RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/GC/M/128 
18 November 2010 
 (10-6153) 
General Council 
21 October 2010  
 
 
 
MINUTES OF MEETING 
 
Held in the Centre William Rappard  
on 21 October 2010  
 
Chairman:  Mr John Gero (Canada) 
 
 
Subjects discussed1: Page  
 
1. Report by the Chairman of th e Trade Negotiati ons Committee ..........................................2  
2. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the 
Dedicated Session of the Committ ee on Trade and Development ........................................4  
3. Aid for Trade – Preparations for the Third Global Review – Statement by the 
Director-General............................................................................................................... ........5  
4. Transparency for Preferential Trade Arra ngements – Report by the Chairman 
of the Committee on Tr ade and Development........................................................................9  
5. Accession priorities for 2010 in respect of  LDCs – Communication from Zambia 
on behalf of the LDC Group ..................................................................................................11  
6. WTO Pension Plan – Annual Report of the Management Board for 2009 .......................19  
7. Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration – Report on meeting of October 2010 ................................................................................................................... ........20
 
8. Eighth Ministerial Conference – Statement by the Chairman ...........................................21  
9. Chairmanship of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia – Statement 
by the Chairman ................................................................................................................ .....21  
10. Administrative Measures for Members in arrears – Statement by the Chairman...........23  
ANNEX  – Statements by delegations at the informal meeting of the Trade Negotiations 
Committee on 19 October 2010................................................................................................... ........24 
 
  
                                                     
 
1 The Proposed Agenda was circulated in document WT/GC/W/626. WT/GC/M/128 
Page 2  
 
  1. Report by the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee 
1. The Chairman
 invited the Director-General, as Chairman of the TNC, to report on the TNC's 
activities since his last report to the Council. 
2. The Director-General, Chairman of the TNC , recalled2 that the TNC had met in informal 
mode on 19 October to review and assess the latest developments in the DDA.  On that occasion, he 
had provided Members with a comprehensive report on the latest activities in the Negotiating Groups 
and had shared some of his impressions during his recent meetings with colleagues around the world.  
He did not intend to repeat his full remarks to  the TNC, since these had been circulated in 
JOB/TNC/5.  However, he wished to briefly place on the record of the General Council some of the 
main points he had noted in the discussion at that meeting.  First, while Members had seen some 
encouraging signs from the activity among delegatio ns in the so-called small-group process under the 
overall cocktail approach, they had reaffirmed th at all of these processes had to feed into the 
Negotiating Groups and the TNC.  Throughout the process, Members had emphasized the centrality 
and primacy of the multilateral forum.  Those engaged in the small-group process had repeatedly stressed that participants were brain-storming and not negotiating.  As all had agreed in March, the 
main objective of the cocktail approach was to re-e nergize the multilateral ne gotiating process, not to 
supplant it.  That was true then, and remained true  now.  In his own consultations, as well as at the 
informal TNC, he had also noted a collective desire  for the Negotiating Groups to intensify their work 
as part of this overall cocktail of activity and as part  of the process towards new texts.  Clearly, these 
texts could only emerge from the Negotiating Group Chairs as a product of their multilateral 
processes. 
3. One of the clearer messages to come out of th e informal TNC had been a general willingness 
among delegations to allow the small-group process to proceed to its second round of brainstorming.  
However, virtually all interventions at the mee ting had provided a strong reminder of the value and 
importance delegations attached to the transpar ency and inclusiveness principles which guided the 
work within this multilateral framework.  In addition,  the objective of this Geneva cocktail approach 
remained to reach a level of ambition and balance all could subscribe to.  This, of course, would 
require that all areas were being included and test ed in the informal deliberations.  The foremost 
challenge facing all Members over the next several w eeks was to take the engagement to a higher gear 
by going deeper and wider in the discussions, as a prelude to the "give and take" that would be 
required to build a final package.  Regarding the G20 meeting in Seoul in November, as well as the 
APEC Leaders and Ministers meetings taking place in  Japan, all were looking to Leaders to send a 
clear political signal that they were ready to enter th e end-game of the Doha ne gotiations and that they 
were willing to empower delegations in Geneva to en ter the final stretch of the negotiations.  As he 
had said at the TNC, it would therefore make sense to give the various processes in Geneva until mid-
November, at which point one would need to evalua te again and take stock of where the process had 
got to, as well as the next steps, while also be nefiting from the discussions at the G20 and APEC 
Leaders meetings. 
4. Before concluding, he wished to mention the ar ea of trade monitoring.  As indicated in the 
last informal TPRB meeting on 8 July 2010, the S ecretariat was preparing two reports which should 
be available in November.  The first, on G20 trad e measures adopted in the context of the crisis, was 
planned to be made public during the first week of November.  The second, his Annual Overview of 
Trade-Related Developments, was planned to be dist ributed during the third week of November.  As 
was now usual practice, these reports were being prep ared in close coordination with all delegations, 
and they would be made available to all in the interest of transparency. 
                                                     
 
2 Subsequently circulated in document JOB/GC/4.  WT/GC/M/128 
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  5. The Chairman  invited any delegation that wished the statement it made at the informal TNC 
meeting held 19 October to be included in the minutes of this General Council meeting to 
communicate this directly to the Secretariat.3 
6. The representative of the Dominican Republic , on behalf of the Informal Group of 
Developing Countries , thanked the Director-General for his report.  Developing countries looked 
upon the current stalemate in the negotiations with gr ave concern.  In finding the way that would lead 
to the successful conclusion of the Round,  Members had to remain faithful to the principles that had 
guided them thus far.  They should never lose si ght of the concept under which these negotiations had 
been launched, which was that of a "development" Round.  Development should remain at the heart of 
the negotiations, most importantly by delivering on the issues that had been identified so far as being 
of relevance to the developing world.  Devel oping countries supported the efforts being made to 
unblock the negotiations, and in particular the co cktail approach that had been outlined by the 
Director-General as TNC Chair.  Ne vertheless, this process, particularly in respect of the small-group 
meetings, needed to be fine-tuned.  The IGDC co nsidered that small-group meetings were a useful 
exercise, as they allowed for brainstorming and ex change of views on a number of issues, specially 
those that had received less attention in the nego tiations thus far.  However, the principle of 
transparency needed to be fully respected, and the entire membership needed to be apprised of the 
discussions in the small-group process.  The IGDC also wished to reiterate the primacy of the 
multilateral process as the basis for all future work  in the DDA.  He assured all that the IGDC 
continued to be committed to working with the chai rpersons of the various negotiating groups and the 
TNC, and with the rest of the membership to find  a consensus that would bring a swift and successful 
outcome to the DDA.  
7. Speaking on behalf of the Dominican Republic , he said the Director-General's statement at 
the recent TNC meeting had included a positive assess ment of the small-group process taking place 
under the cocktail approach and the brainstormi ng that should lead to better scenarios and 
understandings for speeding up the conclusion of the Round, which had already lasted for more than 
ten years.  The Director-General's assessment ha d been shared by both developed and developing 
countries participating in these small groups.  The pr evious day, a Minister from a major Member had 
said that these groups were a useful and helpful means of keeping the dialogue open.  This positive 
outlook needed to be maintain ed as Members made headway unde r a transparent and multilateral 
approach that would enhance the process and benef it all Members.  The Director-General had also 
emphasized the 13 per cent growth in trade over the p ast year.  However, the way things were looking 
at present outside this organization pointed to a downward trend.  The continued asymmetries in 
global accounts stemming from lack of coordination among the major economies in the implementation of their monetary and fiscal polici es – which was one of the root causes of the recent 
international crisis – and failure to conclude th e Doha Round, were creati ng high volatility in world 
currency, commodity and securities markets.  The adverse effects on market certainty of policies 
aimed at boosting aggregate demand in deficit econom ies and tightening it in surplus economies were 
compounded by the daily movement of some US$4 tr illion worth of idle inv estment capital, which 
was generating strong fluctuations in these market s, thus discouraging productive investment and 
increasing precautionary savings. 
8. This was unquestionably further dampening th e slow pace of global economic and trade 
growth.  Low- and middle-income countries were the most hard hit, because they were still entangled 
in the pernicious effects of the crisis, with high levels of unemployment, diminishing domestic 
production and lower foreign trade volumes – a situa tion that was further worsened by contracting 
foreign aid flows due to the donor economies' huge fiscal deficits.  According to a press release, 
during the Director-General's recent participation in the autumn meetings of the Bretton Woods 
Institutions in Washington, he had pointed out that  the issue of exchange-rate movements did not fall 
                                                     
 
3 Such statements are included in the Annex to the present records. WT/GC/M/128 
Page 4  
 
  within the scope of the WTO, and he was right, since this was more a question of monetary policy.  
However, the fact was that exchange-rate fluctuati ons in the major world trading currencies affected 
global trade behaviour to a greater extent than an y trade-policy measure, because of their impact on 
the relative prices of all goods and services traded in the markets.  The Dominican Republic therefore 
hoped that at the G20 Summit in Korea the Director-G eneral, as the representative of the organization 
competent in matters of international trade policy,  would voice the organization's deep concern about 
the dangers that the implementation of the current policies and failure to conclude the Doha Round 
entailed for the recovery of sustained global growth  and development.  The lack of solidarity and 
commitment lately shown by the world's leaders regarding the future of humankind had led to the 
failure of a number of important meetings, such as the Copenhagen summit on climate change and the 
summit on the Millennium Development Goals, which woul d not be achieved by 2015.  If this kind of 
attitude persisted, all that rema ined was to follow his country's peasant wisdom and pray for the 
creator's protection and forgiveness, since the world's leaders had decided to leave mankind 
defenceless and at the mercy of human selfishness. 
9. The General Council took note
 of the Director-General's report and of the statements. 
2. Work Programme on Small Economies – Report by the Chairman of the Dedicated 
Session of the Committee on Trade and Development 
10. The Chairman  said that in line with the framework and procedures agreed by the General 
Council in 2002, the Work Programme on Small Economies was a standing item on the General 
Council's agenda, and the Committee on Trade and De velopment reported regularly to the Council on 
the progress of work in its Dedicated Sessions on th is subject.  He invited Mr Erwidodo (Indonesia), 
Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the CTD, to  report on the progress of work in this area. 
11. Mr Erwidodo (Indonesia), Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the CTD , said that since his 
last report in July, he was pleased to report that th e proponents of SVEs contin ued to be active in the 
DDA negotiations, including in recent meetings of the Negotiating Groups on Agriculture, NAMA, 
Services, Trade Facilitation and Rules, especially rega rding fisheries subsidies.  They had also been 
following the recent consultations and work on the Aid-for-Trade initiative and were meeting 
regularly to discuss among themselves and also with other Members.  He understood that the 
proponents were currently reflecting on future work in these areas and other relevant bodies within the 
wider WTO agenda, including the CTD Dedicated Se ssion on Small Economies.  It was expected that 
new submissions would be made in the various bodi es at an appropriate time.  The Secretariat was 
now revising a paper which compiled all the proposals made to date by the proponents of SVEs.  This 
provided a detailed record of their work thus fa r in the Negotiating Groups as well as work undertaken 
in the regular WTO Committees and bodies.  This pa per was to be ready for a meeting of the CTD 
Dedicated Session that was to take place towards the end of 2010.  He would keep the Council 
informed of any developments as they arose in  the course of future work related to SVEs. 
12. The representative of Barbados , on behalf of the SVEs , thanked the Chair of the Dedicated 
Session for his report.  As that report reflected, th e SVEs had continued to participate actively across 
the DDA negotiating areas, where their interests la y not only in developi ng flexibilities for their 
special circumstances, as in the Agriculture, NAMA and Services nego tiations, but also to safeguard 
the livelihoods of their populations, as relevant to the fisheries subsidies discussions.  In articulating 
their concerns, they had been constructively engage d with Members at a number of levels, and looked 
forward to continuing this process of dialogue.  Such  engagement was a relevant contribution to the 
SVEs' internal reflections that were focused on a dvancing further work within the Doha negotiating 
context, as well as in other relevant bodies, in cluding the CTD in Dedicated Session. The SVEs 
appreciated the continued work the Secretariat was undertaking in revising the factual compilation 
document, which they hoped would help Member s to better understand th e SVEs' trade-related  WT/GC/M/128 
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  concerns.  They looked forward to their discussions with Members during the next CTD Dedicated 
Session. 
13. The General Council took note  of the report of the Chairman of the Dedicated Session of the 
Committee on Trade and Development and of the statement. 
3. Aid for Trade – Preparations for the Third Global Review – Statement by the Director-
General 
14. The Chairman  recalled that the First Global Review of Aid for Trade had taken place in 
November 2007 and the Second Global Review in July 2009.  He invited the Director-General to make a statement on the ongoing preparations for the Third Global Review of Aid for Trade, which he 
understood would take place in July 2011. 
15. The Director-General
 said he wished to begin his statement with the question of whether Aid 
for Trade was working.  This w as the question the Secretary-General of the OECD and he had asked 
in letters which had just been sent to Members and their Ministers.  The intention was to make the 
question, and the answers to it, the focus of the Th ird Global Review of Aid for Trade in July 2011.  
The purpose of his statement to the Council at the present meeting was to set out how it was proposed 
to use the joint OECD-WTO monitoring and evaluati on exercise to collect and present the answers to 
this question, and to sketch out how he saw this  process unfolding between now and the Third Global 
Review in July 2011.  The Global Review in  2009 had taken place against the backdrop of the 
unfolding global economic crisis.  However, four  Members – Japan, France, the Netherlands and the 
UK – had offered pledges of continued financial support for Aid for Trade.  At the G20 Toronto 
summit in June 2010,  leaders had committed themselves to maintain momentum for Aid for Trade.  
Furthermore, the Korean Chair of the upcoming G20 in Seoul had already indicated a strong interest 
in making sure the next G20 summit had a developm ent focus, including on Aid for Trade.  On the 
demand side, there was growing awareness of the need to mainstream trade into national and regional development policies, and progress towards achieving th is goal.  Of the 88 partner countries that had 
responded to the self-assessment questionnaire circul ated in advance of the Second Global Review, 
more than half had reported that they had fully mainstreamed trade into their national development 
strategy.  He fully expected to see this positive trend continue, not least among LDCs, now that the 
enhancement of the Integrated Framework was complete. 
16. There was no doubt that very significant progress had been made in implementing the 
recommendations of the Task Force, which had repo rted to the General Council in July 2006 on how 
to operationalize Aid for Trade.  Partners were prio ritizing trade objectives in their national plans, and 
donors were making additional funds available.  Even more satisfying was that the trade and 
development communities seemed to be communicati ng.  One could say with certainty that the 
process was becoming better aligned and starting to work  more efficiently.  However, he asked if Aid 
for Trade was making a difference, if it was havi ng the desired impact on the ground, and whether it 
was living up to its promise.  These questions had become urgent.  The need for sustainability in 
finances was prompting extra scrutiny of pub lic spending.  Many donors were conducting 
comprehensive evaluations of their aid expenditure .  His view had always been that one should 
consider this growing "accountability culture" as an  opportunity.  Since the Members had entrusted 
him with this mandate in 2005, he had consistently stated the need to focus attention on evaluating the 
impact of Aid-for-Trade interventions in developi ng countries.  For the Aid-for-Trade Initiative to 
maintain political support, one needed to demonstrat e clearly and convincingly that Aid for Trade was 
working on the ground.  If the global crisis had made Aid for Trade imperative for developing 
countries, it had also made the need to show r esults essential in donor countries.  This was why he 
was also eager to see the Secretariat implementin g results-based management approaches to its own 
in-house Aid-for-Trade programmes, an area on which work had already started.  There were some 
promising elements, but much more needed to be done.  This was wher e Members' inputs were WT/GC/M/128 
Page 6  
 
  needed.  The monitoring and evaluation framework which had been jointly put in place was based on 
three main elements:  (i) tracking of global aid-fo r-trade flows by the OECD;  (ii) self-assessment 
questionnaires which were being sent to regional economic communities, partners, donors and south-
south actors;  and (iii) case stories outlining what worked and what did not work. 
17. The letters which Members should now have be gun to receive included the self-assessment 
questionnaires and the call for case stories.  The deadline for submission of this information was 
31 January 2011.  As Oscar Wilde had remarked, "[t] he pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never 
simple."  This was why one was looking not just fo r Members' views on what worked, but also their 
experience of what had not gone so well, and their vi ews on what could work better.  He believed that 
these conclusions would carry more weight if one was able to point to areas where Aid for Trade 
could work better.  Information that would be co llected through the questionnaires and case stories 
would inform the next edition of the joint publica tion "Aid for Trade at a Glance".  The information 
would also be made available on the web.  He hoped that by July 2010 one would get a definitive 
answer to the question of whether Aid for Trade was working, but it was also realistic to point to the 
work which still needed to be done to establis h the necessary baselines and benchmarks through 
which to measure progress over time.  Work on indicat ors needed to progress further before one could 
fill the so-called "missing middle" between inputs and impacts.  His expectation was that the body of 
evidence that would be received from Members woul d point to positive associations, but that these 
would need to be further elaborated in the futu re work programme.  However, one should not get 
ahead of oneself.  His intention at the present meetin g was to bring Members' attention to the call to 
participate in this new Aid-for-Trade monitori ng and evaluation exercise, which would be the 
centrepiece of the Third Global Review of Aid for Trade.  As Members regularly reminded the 
Secretariat, the operationalization of Aid for Trade lay in the hands of developing countries, regional 
economic communities and their development partners .  By extension, the Members were the best 
judge of what was, and was not, working.  Put simp ly, if the Third Global Review was to be a success, 
Members' input was needed, and he looked forward to  receiving it.  He wished to thank the Chairman 
of the CTD for his leadership in bringing this matter forward. 
18. All delegations who spoke thanked the Director-G eneral for his statement on the preparations 
for the Third Global Review of Aid for Trade, and also the Secretariat for its hard work on this 
important issue. 
19. The representative of Turkey
 said his delegation was very pleased that Members had come 
such a long way in the implementation of Aid for Tr ade.  Turkey was fully committed to the Aid-for-
Trade Initiative and was ready to contribute to e fforts exploring ways to further enhance its 
effectiveness.  His country would make the necess ary preparations to update information and share 
experiences with other Members, and Turkey’s financ ial contribution was already in the coffers of the 
EIF Trust Fund.  His country was preparing to host a major event between 30 May and 3 June 2011, 
the Fourth UN Conference on the LDCs (LDC-IV).   Needless to say, it attached the highest 
importance to this Conference, which should not onl y ensure a successful event but also a meaningful 
outcome.  Independent of the themes to be addressed  at this Conference, importance should be given 
to capacity-building initiatives like Aid for Trade, and particularly the EIF, which aimed at alleviating 
constraints impeding supply capacities, including weak  trade-related infrastructure in the LDCs.  
Bearing this in mind, Turkey looked forward to being able to share many Aid-for-Trade and EIF 
success stories at LDC-IV. 
20. The representative of Zambia , on behalf of the LDCs , said these countries had taken note of 
the preparations thus far undertaken and the activiti es planned to be undertaken in the coming months 
regarding Aid for Trade.  The LDCs attached great  importance to the process of review envisaged for 
the coming Global Review based on case stories.  As highlighted at the CTD's meeting on Aid for 
Trade in July 2010, showcasing impacts and outcome s of Aid-for-Trade initiatives was an important 
and necessary step towards identifying challenges and solutions to the smooth and effective  WT/GC/M/128 
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  implementation of Aid-for-Trade initiatives.  For developing countries, and the least-developed in 
particular, Aid for Trade was important for the building of the supply capacity necessary for tapping the benefits arising from the multilateral trading sy stem.  For this reason, and as case stories were 
prepared, it would be useful to engage in multi-st akeholder consultations at  national, regional and 
global levels in order to have a real and comprehe nsive picture of what was happening under various 
Aid-for-Trade initiatives.  The LDCs were therefore committed to ensuring that this exercise yielded 
results that would enhance the effectiveness and tangible impact of Aid-for-Trade initiatives in 
addressing the intended objectives.  To this end, they would undertake to submit case stories and 
provide responses to the partner questionnaires.  Th e LDCs hoped that their development partners 
would come forth to collaborate with them in developing quality case stories.
 
21. The representative of the United States  said his delegation looked forward to the Third Global 
Review of Aid for Trade as an opportunity to re view the tremendous progress made over the past five 
years.  As the Director-General had said, the fo cus of the Third Global Review was whether Aid for 
Trade was working.  The US thought  the answer was a clear "yes," as the evidence gathered over the 
past five years had demonstrated.  One of the most  important achievements of this work was the fact 
that Ministries responsible for trade and the WTO and those responsible for development, who often 
spoke in different vocabularies, were now worki ng collectively to ensure that assistance and trade 
were complementary.  The US was in the pro cessing of preparing its questionnaire and the case 
studies the Director-General had described.  The tr emendous response to the requests for information 
made in connection with the Second Global Review had been invaluable, and the US looked forward 
to a similar high response rate in preparation for the Third Global Review. 
22. The representative of the European Union  said the EU attached great importance to Aid for 
Trade, which was a key instrument to ensure that  developing countries, especially LDCs, integrated 
into the multilateral trading system and fully enj oyed the benefits of WTO membership.  As the 
world's largest aid donor, the EU remained committe d to maintaining its Gleneagles target, and had 
indeed surpassed it.  However, it was not just th e headline figures that counted, but the impact and 
effectiveness of Aid for Trade, particularly in the current economic climate.  For this reason, the EU 
was pleased that the Third Global Review would fo cus above all on delivery of Aid for Trade, its 
impact on the ground, and the importance of the join t responsibility of all – donors and recipients – to 
be accountable and to implement Aid for Trade eff ectively.  His delegation wished to thank the 
Director-General and the Secretariat for the wo rk they were doing on the preparation of the 
questionnaires.  This collection of information w ould provide Members with ample information on 
what worked or, as the case might be, what did not work in the Aid-for-Trade initiative, and why.  
The EU and its member States were already carryin g out work to collect case studies and submissions 
of questionnaires, and hoped this woul d be finalised in January 2011.  It looked forward to sharing its 
considerable experience in this exercise and also to learning. 
23. The representative of Australia  said his country understood th at many developing countries 
required assistance to take full advantage of the bene fits of international trade, and it was committed 
to helping these countries overcome barriers that c onstrained their ability to do so.  Some of the most 
persistent challenges were those faced by vulnerabl e LDCs and small and remote economies, such as 
the islands of the South Pacific.  In this context,  Australia had engaged in a significant up-scaling of 
its Aid-for-Trade commitments in  the past few years, from US $154 million to around 
US$400 million.  Australia attached great importance to Aid for Trade and welcomed the focus of the 
Third Global Review on outcomes and impact.  This focus would not only assist in measuring the 
impact of Aid for Trade, but also inform the desi gn of future activities to improve aid effectiveness.  
Australia would be supporting a prep aratory workshop for the Pacific to assist Members in that region 
to engage in, and benefit from, the Third Global Review.  This would likely take place in early 
December.  Participation by the countries in the Pa cific region was important in order to highlight the 
particular challenges and opportunities in that region and the important role to be played by Aid for 
Trade.  Australia was supporting the Pacific wo rkshop as it saw great merit in assisting developing WT/GC/M/128 
Page 8  
 
  countries and LDCs, in this case the Pacific Islands, to  be able to share their experiences with Aid for 
Trade.  Their participation in the process leading up to the upcoming Third Global Review would 
highlight the important role of Aid for Trade in the Pacific region and the particular challenges and 
opportunities faced by small and remote island economies. 
24. The representative of Japan
 said his country appreciated the initiative of the WTO and the 
OECD for the Third Global Review, including the preparation of questionnaires.  Japan would fully 
cooperate with all the stakeholders for the success of this review.  As the Third Global Review would 
focus on monitoring and evaluation, Members needed to be able to show, through rigorous review, that Aid for Trade had made a difference on the groun d in the current austere financial circumstances, 
as the Director-General had emphasized in his report.   Japan supported the effo rts the Secr etariat was 
making for this purpose.  It was steadily im plementing its own initiative of US$12 billion for 2009-
2011 and was ready to demonstrate the effectiveness of that initiative
. 
25. The representative of Korea  said his delegation fully shared the view that Aid for Trade had 
greatly contributed to the capacity building of deve loping countries in trade. In order to expand and 
develop its positive effects, it was es sential to ensure its effective im plementation.  In this regard, a 
strong monitoring system and assessment procedures were needed.  These could even lead to an 
increase of donations by enhancing donors' and recipient countries' confidence in Aid for Trade.  Aid 
for Trade was one of the important items on the ag enda of the G20 Summit in Seoul, and Korea had a 
keen interest in developing various ways to enhan ce its effectiveness.  Sharing of experiences among 
Members on this issue could contribute to est ablishing more effective monitoring and assessment 
procedures. 
26. The representative of China  said his delegation was pleased to know that despite the 
unprecedented financial and economic crisis, Member s had maintained the momentum on Aid for 
Trade.  With the uneven and fragile recovery of the world economy, there was no doubt that Aid for 
Trade would continue to play an important role a nd that Members remained ac tively engaged in this 
exercise.  The Third Global Review provided Memb ers with a timely and valuable opportunity to 
examine the impact and effectiveness of Aid for Tr ade on the ground, and to inject new momentum 
for future work.  In this regard, the traditiona l self-assessment questionnaire and newly-established 
case-story exercise would facilitate the achievement of Members' goals.  It was also of paramount 
importance for Members to demonstrate the willingn ess to take concrete action to help the poor.  
China wished to reassure all Members of its clo se cooperation and constructi ve engagement in the 
Third Global Review and other work on Aid for Trade. 
27. The representative of Tanzania  said that Aid for Trade was very important, especially for the 
LDCs.  His delegation fully supported the statement by Zambia for the LDCs.  His country welcomed 
the initiative and confirmed that it had received the questionnaire sent to the Ministry of Finance and 
Planning and to the Ministry of Industry, Trade a nd Marketing.  However, Tanzania would be holding 
elections on 31October 2010, and thus would need mo re time than the suggested timeframe.  It was 
hoped that this Third Global Review would impr ove any shortcomings and weaknesses identified 
during the Second Global Review.  Tanzania again thanked the donors for their continued support for 
and cooperation with LDCs, as Aid for Trade was cr itical to capacity-building and to help reduce 
supply-side constraints. 
28. The representative of Chinese Taipei  said his delegation agreed that the Second Global 
Review of Aid for Trade had been a great success and thanked the Secretariat for the support it had 
provided.  The new case-story approach introduced for the current review was an excellent way to 
look into how effectively Aid for Trade was working, and his delegation looked forward to hearing 
Members' cases.  Chinese Taipei itself was prepari ng some case stories to share with others and was 
eager to learn from this process.  With Members' joint efforts, the Third Global Review would be 
another fruitful exercise for all.  WT/GC/M/128 
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  29. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
4. Transparency for Preferential Trade Arrangem ents – Report by the Chairman of the 
Committee on Trade and Development 
30. The Chairman  recalled that, in December 2006, the Council had adopted a Decision with 
regard to Transparency for Preferential Trad e Arrangements, under which the Committee on Trade 
and Development had been asked to consider transparency for preferential arrangements under 
paragraph 2 of the Enabling Clause – other than RTAs  – and to report back for appropriate action by 
the General Council.  The Decision had been adopted without prejudice to the results of the deliberations of the CTD.  It was his understandi ng that there had been developments in the CTD 
recently concerning this matter, and he invite d the Chairman of the Committee on Trade and 
Development to report on these developments. 
31. Mr Erwidodo (Indonesia), Chairman of the Committee on Trade and Development
, recalled 
that at the General Council meeti ng in July 2010, he ha d reported on the significant progress that had 
been made in the small-group cons ultations he had been holding.  He had conveyed his optimism that 
the CTD would shortly be in a position to transmit to  the Council a proposed text on a transparency 
mechanism for PTAs.  He now wished to inform th e General Council of important developments that 
had taken place on this matter since the Council's July  meeting, and particularly in the past few 
weeks.  After the Council's July meeting, he had continued to work intensively with Members in a 
small-group setting to further refine the draft text proposal by Brazil, China, India and the United States.  After a number of consulta tions, delegations had eventually b een able to bridge the gaps in 
their positions, so that all the square brackets on th e draft text could be removed.  Thereafter, the 
proponents had presented a clean text to the CTD at  its meeting on 4 October 2010.  He was pleased 
to inform Members that at that meeting, the CT D had approved the text on a transparency mechanism 
for PTAs and had agreed to transmit the text, c ontained in WT/COMTD/71, to the General Council 
with a recommendation for adoption.  The CTD's c onsideration of transparency for PTAs, which had 
begun in early 2007 based on the mandate given by the General Council, had now been concluded. 
32. He wished to thank Members for their active engagement in the discussions on this matter 
during the past few years, and for their patience and flexibility, without which these discussions could 
not have been concluded successfully.  The fact  that the so-called "small group" had gradually 
expanded over the years to include more and more de legations was a testament not only to interest in 
this issue, but also to the collaborative nature of the process.  He also wish ed to thank his predecessor 
as CTD Chair for his tireless efforts to bring these ne gotiations to a conclusi on.  He understood that 
some Members were now completing their internal pr ocedures in order to allow the Mechanism to be 
adopted in the near future, possibly at the next General Council meeting.  The implementation of the 
PTA transparency mechanism would be an important  element in Members' overall efforts to enhance 
transparency in this institution. 
33. The representative of Brazil
 expressed his delegation's satisfaction with the conclusion of the 
negotiations on the transparency mechanism for PTAs .  Agreement had been reached almost exactly 
three years after Brazil and India had jointly ta bled the non-paper in document JOB(07)/142, which 
had later been co-sponsored by China and the United St ates.  On behalf of the proponents, he wished 
to thank all the delegations whic h had constructively participated  in the drafting process or had 
contributed comments and suggestions each time a ne w version had been presented at  the open-ended 
CTD meetings.  He also wished to thank the CTD Chair for his personal efforts since he had taken 
over chairmanship of the CTD, as well as the permanent support that had been given by his 
predecessor.  Brazil also wished to acknowledge the invaluable su pport and assistance received from 
the Secretariat.  As already mentioned by the CTD Chair, the purpose of this Mechanism was to 
enhance Members' understanding and to increase tran sparency of the many existing PTAs by setting 
out procedural requirements.  Although there were  several similarities between the provisional RTA WT/GC/M/128 
Page 10  
 
  Transparency Mechanism and the one for PTAs, it s hould be noted that these two types of agreements 
had substantive differences, whic h had led to different notifica tion and reporting obligations.  
Notification and reporting provisions had been devi sed so as to keep the burden on the notifying 
countries to a minimum, without reducing the necessar y level of ambition of the Mechanism.  This 
final draft also took into account concerns of de veloping countries – especially beneficiaries of PTAs 
– related both to their particular technical constraint s and to their request for adequate participation in 
the notification process.  Brazil understood that due to unfinished internal procedures of one Member, 
the Mechanism could not be adopted at the present meeting – which would otherwise have been the 
case.  It sincerely expected that all pending issu es could be resolved by the next General Council 
meeting, especially considering the long delay in the negotiations on the text of the Mechanism.   
34. The representative of the United States
 said his delegation appreci ated and supported Brazil's 
statement.  This Mechanism would make an impor tant contribution to facilitating transparency in 
Members' trade-preference programmes.  The US was extremely pleased with the intensity of the 
work by Members to resolve all issues in the text an d the efforts of the Chair in these discussions.  His 
delegation had valued the opportunity to collaborate cl osely with Brazil, India and China in this work, 
and greatly appreciated the efforts undertaken by those Members which had constructively 
participated in these discussions and helped achie ve CTD approval of this Mechanism.  The US 
encouraged the EU to conclude its internal deliberations expediently, in order to ensure adoption of 
the PTA transparency mechanism at th e December General Council meeting. 
35. The representative of Canada  said his country had formed part of the small-group meetings 
that had led to the outcomes text in early Octobe r.  The PTA transparency mechanism, based on a 
proposal from Brazil, China, India and the US, had been under discussion since early 2007.  It was 
broadly based on the December 2006 Transparency  Mechanism for RTAs, and set out notification 
requirements for Members granting unilateral trade pr eferences, such as Canada's LDC tariff scheme.  
Canada joined others in offering congratulati ons to the CTD Chair and the proponents on the 
successful conclusion of their work to est ablish a transparency mechanism for PTAs. 
36. The representative of Japan  recalled that at the previous General Council meeting, many 
Members had said the work on the PTA transparency mechanism needed to be accelerated.  Japan had 
actively participated in the small-group consulta tions, and Members had been able to reach an 
agreement on this mechanism at the CTD's October meeting.  Japan highly appreciated the efforts 
made by the Chairman and the proponents.  This mechanism would be an important tool for enhancing the transparency of PTAs. 
37. The representative of the European Union
 said his delegation was pleased that agreement on 
the PTA transparency mechanism had now been reach ed.  All had worked hard on this for a long 
time, and there was finally an outcome satisfactory to all delegations.  The EU wished to thank the 
proponents of the original mechanism and the e fforts of the CTD Chair and his predecessor in 
bringing this work to fruition.  The EU looked forw ard to completing its own internal legal procedures 
to enable the mechanism to be approved formally in th e very near future.  More broadly, the fact that 
Members had been able to reach agreement on th is instrument was a good sign for the WTO.  It 
showed that, notwithstanding the difficulties faced in many areas of work, the WTO could deliver, and that was a very good sign for the organization. 
38. The representative of China
 said his delegation wished to echo the statements by Brazil, the 
US and others.  As a co-sponsor of the proposal, China wished to express its sincere appreciation for 
the tireless work undertaken by the CTD Chair, hi s predecessor and the Secretariat.  China also 
wished to thank the Members who had construc tively engaged and shown flexibility in the 
consultations.  It was encouraging that Memb ers had finally reached an agreement on the 
establishment of a transparency mechanism for PTAs, which clearly demonstrated their firm 
determination to enhance transpar ency and promote the multilateral trading system.  This would not  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 11 
 
 
  be a minor achievement, but would greatly boost th e morale of Members.  The spirit of mutual 
understanding and close cooperation shown during th e discussions was also commendable.  Having 
said this, China encouraged the EU to accelerate its internal process to facilitate the adoption of the 
mechanism at the General C ouncil meeting in December. 
39. The representative of Chinese Taipei  thanked all who had been involved in the work on the 
PTA transparency mechanism.  The establishm ent of such a mechanism would increase the 
transparency of PTAs.  His delegation had participat ed in the consultations and was satisfied with the 
balanced text produced.  Chinese Taipei supported the text and looked forward to its adoption by the 
General Council as soon as possible. 
40. The representative of Egypt  said his delegation wished to acknowledge the CTD Chair's 
invaluable efforts and the role of the delegations  of Brazil, China, India and the United States in 
devising the terms of reference for the Transparency  Mechanism for Preferential Trade Arrangements.  
This mechanism would prove to be a valuable add ition to enhancing the transparency procedures and 
requirements of non-reciprocal prefer ences accorded to developing a nd least-developed countries.  He 
wished to emphasize the central role that the CT D had to play in implementing the transparency 
mechanism for PTAs, as well as its current role in enhancing the transparency of RTAs notified on the 
basis of the 1979 Decision on Differential and Mo re Favourable Treatment Reciprocal and Fuller 
Participation of Developing Countries.  He also str essed that paragraph 4 of the Terms of Reference of 
the CTD entrusted the Committee to consider any questions which might  arise with regards to either 
the application or the use of special provisions in the Multilateral Trade Agreements and related 
Ministerial Decisions in favour of developing count ries.  The CTD should ther efore remain the focal 
point for the integrated treatment of all developmen t aspects within the multilateral trading system.  In 
this context, Egypt looked forward to the adoptio n of the transparency mechanism for PTAs and its 
application on a provisional basis. 
41. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
5. Accession priorities for 2010 in respect of LDCs – Communication from Zambia on 
behalf of the LDC Group 
42. The Chairman  drew the Council's attention to the communication in WT/GC/128, in which 
Zambia, on behalf of the LDC Group, had requested that this item be placed on the Council's Agenda, 
and invited Zambia to introduce it. 
43. The representative of the Zambia , on behalf of the LDC Group , said the Group had requested 
that this item be included on the Agenda to enable  it to share some thoughts on developments that had 
taken place in the accession of LDCs, in order to en courage the facilitation and acceleration of these 
accession processes as a matter of priority.  Accession to the WTO was not only important for the 
integration of economies into the multilateral trading system, but also critical for the effective 
functioning and credibility of that system.  He recalled that LDC accession had been highlighted as a 
priority for the membership at the Doha Ministerial in 2001, as was reflected in paragraph 42 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration.  To this end, Mi nisters had agreed to facilitate and accelerate the 
negotiations with acceding LDCs and had instructed the Secretariat to reflect the priority Ministers 
attached to LDC accession in its annual technical-a ssistance plans.  The Group wished to share some 
points concerning LDC accession in general and the priorities for 2010 in particular. 
44. First, the Group wished to acknowledge the pr ogress made since 2001 and the attention that 
had been given to the accession of LDCs, which in cluded the adoption of the December 2002 General 
Council Decision on Accession of the Least-Developed Countries, the dedicated dialogue on LDC 
accession and the Director-General’s consultative initiative, among other actions.  The Group also 
wished to acknowledge the work that Members and the Secretariat had undertaken in the Informal WT/GC/M/128 
Page 12  
 
  Group on Accession, which had been instrumental in the identification of priority accessions for 2010 
and the provision of updates on the accession dossiers, including the status of appointment of working party chairpersons.  Accessions, if complex, had value in assisting domestic reforms necessary for 
establishing a base for trade growth and developmen t.  However, some of the demands made had 
gone beyond the levels of development of the concer ned countries.  It was for this reason that LDCs 
wished to emphasize the need to conduct their accession processes in  accordance with  the letter and 
spirit of the 2002 General Council Decision.  Furt her, the accession processes of three LDCs – Samoa, 
Vanuatu and Yemen – had been established as part of  the 2010 priorities.  The LDCs believed it 
should be possible to conclude these, subject to fi nalizing the remaining bilateral negotiations and the 
necessary implementation instruments by the respective acceding governments. 
45. Second, the global economy was in a phase of fragile  recovery with considerable uncertainty.  
The coming years would be particularly important fo r the WTO to demonstrate its pivotal role in the 
creation of a resilient global economy, and also to  show the world that Members were committed to 
addressing, as a matter of priority, the concerns of LDCs by delivering concrete results that would 
form part of the outcome of the Fourth UN LDC Conference scheduled to take place in Istanbul in 
2011.  For this reason, the LDCs wished to stress the importance of the WTO sending a strong 
positive signal to the rest of the world, not only in concluding the DDA, but also in furthering the 
accession of LDCs.  It was for this reason that the Group had requested the inclusion of this item on 
the Agenda, and it further requested that this item be retained on the Agenda  for the Council's meeting 
in December, so as to take decisions on the advanced accessions. 
46. Regarding priority accessions for 2010, the Group  had analysed the details of the accession 
negotiations for Vanuatu, Yemen and Samoa and wished  to highlight some country-specific issues.  
With respect to Vanuatu, the status of its acces sion was special, because the negotiating process had 
been concluded in 2001, but the package had not been  signed due to Vanuatu's request for more time 
to evaluate it.  The Secretariat had informed Me mbers in the Informal Group on Accession that it was 
engaged, at Vanuatu's request, in technically upda ting the 2001 package.  This technical update had 
been undertaken over the past twelve months, and substantial progress had been made.  The time was 
ripe to reconvene Vanuatu’s 2001 Working Party, un der the authority of the Chairman of the General 
Council, in order to consider a nd adopt the 2001 draft accession package as technically updated by the 
Secretariat. 
47. Regarding Yemen, substantial progress ha d been made on its accession on both the 
multilateral and bilateral fronts, with the eight h Working Party meeting having been held on 
21 September 2010.  Negotiations on the multilateral front had resulted in agreement on commitment 
language on many issues, which had since been compiled as part of the accession package.  The 
Yemeni Parliament was currently in the process of  enacting legislation on the package to facilitate 
implementation.  Nearly all bilateral negotiations  had been finalized, and it was hoped that the 
remaining few bilateral negotiations would be comp leted soon.  It was the Group's expectation that 
the ninth and final Working Party meeting would ta ke place in December to conclude the remaining 
issues. 
48. Regarding Samoa, the Group wished to express its appreciation to Amb. Kitajima of Japan for 
his intensive and constructive enga gement in the short time he had acted as Chairman of the Working 
Party.  His positive and strong efforts towards fi nalization of Samoa’s accession were welcome.  
However, although Samoa was one of the 2010 priority accessions, issues that had emerged in the 
recent past had necessitated Samoa's request fo r additional time to address outstanding matters, 
particularly in the areas of customs valuation, TR IPS, investment and quantitative restrictions, in 
order to pave the way for finalization of their le gislative process.  Nonetheless, the Group remained 
hopeful that it would not be long before Samoa ti ed up the remaining loose ends of its accession 
process.  The UN had extended the graduation of  Samoa for three more years, and facilitating 
Samoa’s accession to the WTO would be an invaluab le contribution by Members to Samoa’s smooth  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 13 
 
 
  transition from its status as an LDC.  The Group  would continue to give Samoa every support 
required in its efforts to accede to the WTO.  For these reasons, the Group strongly believed that at 
least two LDC accession processes should be comple ted, namely Vanuatu and Yemen, and asked 
Members to commit to the specific conclusion of these two accessions in 2010.  As part of the preparatory process for 2011, it would be useful to be gin setting priorities based on the maturity of the 
accession processes currently underway , and the LDCs looked forward to a constructive engagement 
of the General Council on the issues that had been highlighted. 
49. The representatives of Tanzania
, Dominican Republic for the Informal Group of Developing 
Countries , Bangladesh , Turkey , Morocco for the Arab Group , Nepal , Bolivarian Republic of 
Venezuela , Korea , China , Cuba  and Yemen as an Observer  supported the statement by Zambia for the 
LDC Group. 
50. The representative of Tanzania  reiterated his delegation's confidence in and appreciation to 
the Director-General and the Secretariat for thei r efforts and positive approach to the accession 
process of LDCs.  They had been actively engaged w ith Members in ensuring that work continued at 
a steady progress for LDC acceding countries which were at an advanced stage in the process, namely 
Yemen, Samoa and Vanuatu.  He recalled that the Director-General had always encouraged Members 
and acceding countries to use his good offices to fac ilitate the expeditious a nd smooth conclusion of 
these accession processes, and stressed th at this positive attitude went far in hastening the process of 
accession.  His delegation hoped that before the end of 2010 these countries would have assumed their 
rightful position in the organization, which would in  turn bring about added impetus for the processes 
of those countries still awaiting accession.  He a ppealed to Members to continue assisting other 
developing countries, especially LDCs, which were not  yet Members, so that they could benefit from 
the multilateral trading system and other releva nt WTO legal instruments pertaining to LDCs. 
51. The representative of Australia  said his delegation strongly supported facilitating and 
accelerating the accessions of LDCs, consistent  with the 2002 LDC Accession Guidelines.  
Broadening the membership of the WTO strengthened the multilateral trading system and provided 
important opportunities for the economic growth of new Members.   Australia had a particular interest 
in this issue because of the importance it attach ed to the accession negotiations of Pacific Island 
Forum partners, Vanuatu and Samoa.  Australia  hoped that their accession negotiations, as well as 
Yemen's, could be concluded as expeditiously as possi ble.  It was keen to see this happen in 2010 and 
regretted that this possibility was now looking less ce rtain, in particular for Samoa.  His delegation 
hoped that all bilateral market-access negotiations wo uld be concluded as quickly as possible and that 
they would reflect the genuine commercial interests of  those involved.  The benefits of acceding to the 
WTO should not be looked at through the narro w window of improvements in market access for 
goods and services from the date of accession.  Many of the benefits occurred as part of the accession process through the introduction and implementation of WTO rules and disciplines which contributed 
to the building of robust domestic economic ins titutions.  These in turn, had a long-term positive 
impact on economic growth, investment and devel opment.  Australia acknowledged that the accession 
process involved significant changes which were not al ways easy to implement, was cognisant of the 
range of challenges faced by LDCs when acceding to the WTO, particularly those faced by Samoa 
and Vanuatu, and was cooperating closely with them to make progress on these issues.  Australia welcomed the positive resolve and commitment both c ountries had been showing to this process and 
hoped that all Members would be able to respond positively. 
52. The representative of the European Union
 thanked Zambia for providing an opportunity for 
Members to have an exchange of views on the accession of LDCs.  His delegation attached great importance to their accession, as WTO membership bene fited the economies of LDCs and at the same 
time enriched and gave greater legitimacy to the WTO.   He noted that a lot of progress had been made 
recently on a number of LDC accessions.  Members had been active in finalizing bilateral 
negotiations, and the Secretariat had been equally active in giving the necessary technical guidance to WT/GC/M/128 
Page 14  
 
  acceding countries.  Delegations were starting to s ee the fruits of this, with a number of LDCs – 
Vanuatu, Yemen and Samoa – likely to accede in the n ear future, once some remaining bilaterals were 
concluded and some remaining legislative action was taken, as was the case of Yemen.  The EU 
looked forward to welcoming these countries into the fold soon.   
53. The suggestion that some Members placed excessive demands on LDCs during the accession 
process was a legitimate concern for LDCs and fo r other countries, including one which was a close 
neighbour of the EU, which also faced excessive demands.  As far as the EU was concerned, the 
parameters of the Guidelines on LDC accession had been scrupulously and consistently respected.  
His delegation recognized the very vulnerable situat ion that many LDCs found themselves in, and the 
concomitant need for some space and flexibility.  At the same time, while there was a lot that 
Members could do to facilitate the accession of LD Cs, ultimately the completion of an accession 
process lay with the applicant itself.  All recognized that the process of changing one's trade regime to 
align to the WTO acquis  was difficult and could take many years.  In the case of many LDCs, this 
implied a substantial change of economic policies and the laws that underpinned them.  There was no 
shortcut or way around this, as had been seen in the case of Samoa.  The EU considered that all 
acceding countries, including LDCs, recognized that  the accession process provided a means to carry 
out necessary economic and trade reforms that would be more difficult, if not impossible, to carry out autonomously. 
54. The representative of the Dominican Republic
, on behalf of the Informal Group of 
Developing Countries , said developing countries were committed to achieving universal membership 
in the WTO, and it was their shared view that accession processes should strictly observe the principle 
of less-than-full reciprocity.  Accordingly, count ries in accession should be asked to undertake only 
commitments that were consistent with their prese nt and future developmen t, financial and trade 
needs.  This would also help to accelerate the a ccession of many developing countries and LDCs, and 
it was hoped that their fuller integration into th e multilateral trading syst em would expand their 
development horizons.  Accessions should not be  delayed due to political and non-commercial 
considerations.  
55. The representative of Japan , speaking on behalf of the Chairm an of the Working Party on the 
Accession of Samoa , said the accession of Samoa was one of the priorities established for 2010 and 
that the process had advanced well.  Two bilatera l agreements had been concluded in 2010, and 
Samoa intended to conclude the remaining bila teral negotiations over the coming months.  The 
multilateral negotiations on this accession had progressed  in informal consultations of the Working 
Party, the last of which had taken place in June Samoa was currently workin g hard to resolve the 
outstanding multilateral issues, such as enactment of legislation in areas of foreign investment, 
customs evaluation, TRIPS, SPS, removal of WT O-inconsistent quantitative restrictions, and 
clarifications in several areas of domestic regulation.  Replies to Members' questions and comments would also be prepared.  The successful conclusion  of the work on those outstanding issues was vital 
to move Samoa's accession to its final stage.  His assessment clearly indicated that Samoa's accession 
was strongly supported by all Members and, in his vi ew, it was now critical to engage with Samoa to 
explore how best to support this accession and move fo rward.  He had therefore addressed a letter to a 
competent Samoan Minister explaining the situa tion and inviting his views as to how Samoa saw the 
immediate way forward.  He wished to thank th e Members for their continued support for Samoa's 
accession, and as the new Chair of the Working Part y, looked forward to working with Members and 
the Samoan authorities to bring this accession to a successful conclusion as soon as possible. 
56. Speaking on behalf of Japan
, he said his delegation fully supp orted LDC accessions, in which 
these countries could accelerate their domestic, legal and economic reforms and consequently increase 
their economic growth.  Japan therefore commended the efforts of the acceding LDC countries within 
a transparent and appropriate accession process.  LDC accessions had to continue to be carried out in  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 15 
 
 
  accordance with the 2002 General Council Decision.  Japan would continue to extend its assistance to 
acceding LDCs in order to facilitate their accession. 
57. The representative of Bangladesh  recalled that in Doha, Ministers had been unanimous that 
meaningful integration of the LDCs into the trading system and global economy should involve 
efforts by all Members.  This was in line w ith the overarching objective of making the WTO truly 
global in scope and membership, to which Minister s in Doha had committed themselves.  They had 
also stressed the importance of facilitating and accelerating the accession negotiations of LDCs.  The 
General Council Decision of Decemb er 2002 required Members to exercise restraint in seeking 
concessions and commitments on trade in goods and services from acceding LDCs, taking into 
account the levels of concessions and commitments undertaken by existing LDC Members.  Members 
had to uphold the decisions made and commitments undertaken.  In this regard, he reaffirmed the 
need for the adoption of a binding mechanism to fa st-track the accession of LDCs, the need to avoid 
raising non-trade concerns, and the need to faith fully facilitate and accelerate the negotiations for 
LDCs in the process of accession.  In the spirit of  the agreements reached and commitments made, 
Members should be able to conclude the accession of those LDCs in an advanced stage of the process, 
namely Samoa, Vanuatu and Yemen.  He hoped that the accession negotiations of Vanuatu and 
Yemen could be concluded shortly and that they  could be taken to the LDC-IV Conference as 
concrete results from the WTO.  As for the acce ssion of Samoa, Bangladesh hoped that under the 
leadership of the Working Party Chair, Samoa w ould soon be a Member.  His delegation appreciated 
the progress made on LDC accessions since 2001 and la uded the initiatives of the Director-General in 
this regard, as well as the work of working party Chairs, members of these working parties and the 
Secretariat for their support to acceding LDCs.  Bangladesh also welcomed the appointment of 
Amb. Smidt as the Chair of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia. 
58. The representative of Chinese Taipei , on behalf of the Recently-Acceded Members (RAMs)  
urged Members to facilitate and accelerate all access ion negotiations, and in pa rticular those of the 
LDCs.  As newly-acceded Members, the RAMs shar ed the experience of a comparatively lengthy 
accession process and the painful adjustments that we re being made in order to comply with WTO 
requirements.  Acceding countries agreed to this be cause they believed that joining the WTO would 
greatly benefit their own economies, but the multilatera l trading system as a whole also benefited.  
This was also the goal that acceding countries we re striving to achieve.  The RAMs had always 
stressed that the accession of new countries to the WTO , including developing countries and in 
particular LDCs, continued to br oaden the scope of trade covered by WTO disciplines.  Universal 
membership of the WTO was a critical factor in the establishment of a strong rules-based trading 
system.  The Group therefore called for the expe ditious accession of developing countries and LDCs 
through the full and effective implementa tion of the 2002 General Council Decision. 
59. The representative of Turkey  said accession was an issue of utmost importance for the WTO.  
As Turkey had said at the July General Council meeting, the WTO could not confine itself to the 
current membership.  It needed to develop and expand, and thereby be strengthened.  Since the 
ultimate aim was to contribute to the improvement of the multilateral trading system, continuing dynamism should be the leitmotif of the WTO, and ne w accessions had to be part of this vision.  In 
this respect, his delegation appreciated the embraci ng approach of the Director-General to accession 
issues.  Further, excessive demands that went be yond LDCs' capabilities should  not be made.  This 
issue had been underscored by many  delegations and needed more attention from the membership.  In 
this respect, Turkey fully supported the stat ement by Zambia for the LDC Group, calling for 
prioritizing the accessions of Samoa, Vanuatu and Yemen in 2010.  For various reasons, almost one-
third of existing accession working parties lacked a chairperson, and a sizable portion of appointed 
chairpersons were residing outside Geneva.  He called on his colleagues to volunteer to serve as 
working party Chairs and asked the Chairman, thr ough his good offices, to follow up on this issue. WT/GC/M/128 
Page 16  
 
  60. The representative of New Zealand
 associated his delegation with Australia's statement, 
particularly in respect of Vanuatu and Samoa, who se accessions were also of specific interest to New 
Zealand.  His delegation appreciated the efforts of  the Chair of the Working Party on Samoa.  In 
accordance with the 2002 Guidelines,  market access offered by LD Cs should be commensurate with 
their individual development, financial and trade need s.  He also noted the call in the Guidelines for 
Members to exercise restraint in seeking concessions  and commitments on trade in goods and services 
from acceding LDCs.  His delegation expected a ny Member seeking concessions or commitments 
bilaterally to act in accordance w ith these Guidelines.  New Zealand stood ready to assist these 
countries in resolving the final issues in their accession packages and looked forward to welcoming 
them into the organization. 
61. The representative of Morocco , on behalf of the Arab Group , said WTO accession for 
non-member Arab countries – Algeria, Libya, Suda n and Lebanon, to mention but a few – and LDCs, 
of which Yemen was one, was one of the Arab Group's top priorities, all the more so since some of the countries seeking accession held a record in te rms of the length of the process without any 
substantive results to date.  The Group urged the membership to facilitate and accelerate the accession 
process for applicant countries by subjecting them only to conditionalities that  were commensurate 
with their levels of development.  It urged co mpliance with the mandate in paragraph 59 of the 
Hong Kong Declaration and the principles contained in the 2002 Guidelines.  The Arab Group invited 
Members to show more leniency in terms of the requirements imposed on such countries, which 
should not be asked to negotiate concessions and commitments higher than th ose already undertaken 
by current LDC Members.  In this connection, Yemen's accession process had now reached maturity, 
and this country had to be admitted to the WTO.  The adjustment and upgrading measures undertaken 
by Yemen were set out in the ad hoc report of the Working Party.  The Arab Group also urged the effective and rapid implementation of the Gene ral Council's Decision in May 2010 establishing a 
Working Party on Syria's accession.  The Arab  Group also asked Members to give favourable 
consideration to the Palestinian Author ity's request for WTO observer status. 
62. The representative of Nepal
 said the road of accession for LDCs  had been difficult, costly and 
time-consuming, and this issue had been highlighted  as a priority for the me mbership at the Doha 
Ministerial Conference.  However, in spite of  the 2002 Guidelines that LDCs' accessions be 
conducted on a fast track, this track was yet to emerge.  Having the LDCs on board would enhance the 
credibility and universality of the WTO.  It was equally important that LD Cs were supported with 
effective technical assistance and capacity-buildi ng programmes tailored to their needs in the post-
accession period.  As LDC-IV approached – wh ich was a major undertaking of the UN and the 
international community for the development of social, economic and physical infrastructures in 
LDCs – the WTO should send a strong message based on a clear understanding and a renewed 
partnership for producing tangible results on the gro und, to make a difference in the life of roughly 
12 per cent of the global population, 72 per cent of which was living in extreme poverty in LDCs.   
63. Nepal also agreed with what the Director-General had said at the recent TNC meeting that 
"concluding this Round is not only about generati ng new growth opportunities for all WTO Members.  
It is about reinforcing a global partnership whic h firmly establishes trade opening at the service of 
development.  And it is about strengthening the tr ansparency and predictability of the multilateral 
trading system which have been so fundamental th roughout the crisis".  The DDA had prioritized the 
development of competencies and capacities of LDCs to  enable them to participate in trade as full 
Members and to benefit from the global economy.  Building trade-related infrastructure and capacity 
in LDCs was crucial for them to be able to benef it from global trade and market opportunities.  In this 
context, there was a need to ensure the smooth,  predictable and increased flow of technical and 
financial assistance through Aid for Trade, th e Enhanced Integrated Framework and other 
mechanisms in support of LDCs, in order to build productive capacity and to diversify their industrial 
and trade base.  He stressed the importance that th ese mechanisms be effectively operational, since 
building supply-side capacity was vital in order to  produce, trade and compete globally.  Nepal  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 17 
 
 
  appreciated the donor countries' contributions, and wish ed to urge them to con tinue their financial and 
technical assistance at an enhanced level in orde r to build capacity and infrastructure in LDCs.  
Several reports indicated that the past decade ha d been broadly characterized by growing debt, 
deficits, disparities, deprivation, despair, depr ession and devastation caused by a combination of 
national and global crises, such as crushing poverty,  global warming, unfair global trade, economic 
and financial crises and the rise of extremism.  This called for a renewed and reinvigorated global 
partnership to overcome structural difficulties a nd economic vulnerabilities, and to address emerging 
socio-economic challenges and development needs of  Member countries, LDCs in particular.  One 
should not lose sight of the reason behind the DDA.   
64. The representative of the United States  said his delegation fully supported the completion of 
the remaining requirements for the accession of all thr ee countries.  In particular, the US noted with 
satisfaction the progress that had been made in th e negotiations of Samoa and Yemen during 2010.  
These delegations had, together with several others, dedicated extensive resources to these 
negotiations.  The US understood that completion of the negotiations was close for both countries and 
looked forward to receiving reports of legislative action that would facilitate moving forward to the 
final stages of the process.  His delegation also wished to congratulate Vanuatu on its decision to 
resume its accession process, and understood that Vanuatu had been working closely with the 
Secretariat and interested delegations to update  its accession documentation and to resume the 
negotiations it had suspended almost a decade earl ier.  The results of these efforts would soon be 
presented to Members for review in the Working Pa rty.  The US approach to these accessions had 
been based fully on the 2002 Guidelines which em phasized the use of technical assistance and 
transitional arrangements based on action plans and respect for the unique challenges facing LDC 
applicants.  The successful work to date on these a ccessions had clearly been due to the influence of 
these principles in the negotiations. 
65. The representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela  said his delegation supported the 
statement by the Dominican Republic for the IGDC.  This issue was not merely a question of 
rendering justice to the countries in greatest need .  The image of the WTO as an institution which 
aspired to universal membership was also adver sely affected by the many countries at its door 
awaiting accession, and the fact that technical a nd commercial aspects were not always what stood in 
their way.  Venezuela therefore called for a prompt solution to this issue. 
66. The representative of Ukraine  said that his delegation fully supported the accessions of new 
Members, as this would strengthen the WTO system.  However, he wished to underline that the 
accession process should not dilute the concept of the WTO as a rule-based organization and to draw 
the attention of candidate countries that the majo r work was on their shoulders, with Members ready 
to help where this assistance was relevant and feasibl e.  Ukraine had finished its bilateral negotiations 
with Samoa and was continuing its bilateral c ontacts with Yemen, and it hoped for the early 
accessions of these countries based on a quality and ba lanced outcome of both the bilateral and 
multilateral negotiations. 
67. The representative of Korea  said his delegation shared the IGDC's view that expansion of 
WTO membership would not only promote world trade but also facilitate economic development in acceding countries.  Korea hoped that the priority  accession processes of LDCs would be completed 
as soon as possible.  A successful accession proces s required not only arduous work by acceding 
LDCs, but also the active assistances of Members that understood the special situations of these 
countries.  Korea had accelerate d its bilateral negotiations with  Yemen in 2010 and had signed a 
bilateral protocol the previous m onth.  It hoped that these efforts would contribute to Yemen’s early 
accession, and that other Members that were still in  the negotiation process would join in as soon as 
possible. WT/GC/M/128 
Page 18  
 
  68. The representative of China
 associated his delegation with the statement by the Dominican 
Republic for the IGDC.  China fully supported the faithful implementation of the 2002 Guidelines.  
The fact that only three LDCs had acceded since 2002 demonstrated that a lot remained to be done to 
facilitate the LDC accession process.  He commended the positive steps by the Secretariat with regard 
to the priority of Yemen, Samoa and Vanuatu for 201 0 and was pleased that, thanks also to efforts by 
the three acceding countries, significant progress had b een made.  His delegation wished to encourage 
all Members to give these accessions positive su pport to maintain the current momentum and 
complete the processes as planned.  Comple ting these accessions soon was not only of great 
importance to the three LDCs but also to the organization.  
69. The representative of Colombia  said that Zambia's statement for the LDCs and other 
statements made under this item concerned a problem  of a horizontal nature relating to the accession 
process in general and the accession of LDCs in partic ular.  There had been many statements on this 
matter both at previous General Council meeti ngs and at the Ministerial Conference in 
December 2009.  An organization that sought to promote the economic development of its Members 
and aspired to universal membership might benefit from a systemic review of its accession process, in 
particular regarding the accession of LDCs.  The process could be improved in terms of transparency and greater clarity in the application of its rules, especially the 2002 Guidelines on LDC accession.  Colombia therefore called on the membership in ge neral and on the LDC Group in particular to give 
thought to whether it would be appropriate to em bark on a systemic review of the WTO accession 
process.  Members' concern should not be confined to promoting a few individual accessions.  
Accession to the WTO, especially for LDCs, could not be contingent on the goodwill of the WTO membership, but had to constitute the outcome of an  effective, transparent and participatory process, 
conducted in accordance with the organization's ru les and with full commitment on the part of its 
Members. 
70. The representative of Cuba
 said it was important to highlight  three issues:  the need to 
accelerate the process of accession of these countries;  th e fact that the process had to be based solely 
on technical considerations related to trade, without political constraints;  and the fact that demands 
on LDCs should not go beyond their actual capabilities and development priorities.   
71. The representative of Norway  thanked Zambia for taking the lead in facilitating the 
accessions of LDCs.  All were responsible for en suring that no undue dema nds were made on LDCs 
in this process, and it was the responsibility of a ll acceding Members to make sure that rules and 
regulations were in place in order to finalize th e accession process.  In this respect, the need for 
technical assistance for acceding LDCs was obvious .  Members should avoid any politicization of 
accession to the WTO, as this was important in order to preserve and not undermine the professional trade focus characterizing the organization, which had served Members well. 
72. The representative of Switzerland
 thanked Zambia as the LDC Coordinator for his report and 
for having sharpened Members' discussion on sp ecific points relating to LDC accession.  The large 
number of speakers under this item showed that, as Colombia had said, there was a systemic problem 
with accessions in general and with LDC accessions in particular, and it was necessary to find the means to accelerate the process if the acceding country had fulfilled the required conditions.  The 
General Council Chair might wish to hold consulta tions on how best to address this issue, and 
Switzerland assured him of its support and inte rest in participating in such a process. 
73. The representative of Yemen
, speaking as an Observer , associated his delegation with the 
statement by Zambia on behalf of the LDCs.  Access ion to the WTO was one of the prime concerns of 
about 17 non-member LDCs, Yemen included.  This  state of affairs needed not be the case if the 
international community truly aimed to integrate LDCs into the multilateral trading system.  His 
country had been in the accession process for the past ten years.  Initially, it had been hoped that this 
process would not last that long, given the status of Yemen as an LDC, and the clear 2002 Guidelines.   WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 19 
 
 
  Nevertheless, Yemen could finally see light at the en d of a rather long tunnel.  Yemen's accession was 
in the hands of Members.  Yemen, for its part, had worked hard to reach this  advanced stage in the 
accession process and continued to stand ready to co mplete the few remaining requirements.  It 
believed that working constructively with Member s would allow it to achieve this goal soon, and 
called on Members to place LDC accessions high on their agenda, in light of the upcoming LDC-IV 
in Istanbul.  His delegation looked forward to Me mbers' understanding and support in concluding the 
accession negotiations on both the multilateral and bilatera l tracks by the end of 2010.  It wished to 
thank the Director-General, the EU and the US for receiving a large Yemen delegation from the 
Parliament and civil society, including the private sector.  Their visit to Geneva had been another 
building block to cement the national consensus towards finalizing Yemen's accession. 
74. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
6. WTO Pension Plan – Annual Report of the Management Board for 2009 (WT/L/802) 
75. The Chairman  drew attention to the Annual Report of the Management Board of the WTO 
Pension Plan for 2009 in WT/L/802, which had b een submitted to the General Council in accordance 
with Article 5(d) of the Regulations of the WTO Pension Plan.  
76. Mr Niggli (Switzerland), Chairman of the WTO Pension Plan Management Board , said 2009 
could be considered a landmark year for the WTO Pens ion Plan.  On the investment side, the Plan had 
witnessed a significant rebound from the dismal perf ormance of 2008, with the portfolio producing a 
real rate of return of 21.3 per cent.  On the mana gement side, a major reform had been agreed in order 
to restore the actuarial balance of the Plan.  That  reform comprised two significant elements, namely 
an increase in the normal retirement age from 62 to 65 and an increase in the contribution rate to the 
level prevailing in the UN Joint Staff Pension Fund.   The year 2009 had also seen a continuation of 
efforts deployed since 2007 to streamline the func tioning of the Plan and to achieve greater 
efficiencies and economies.  Those efforts had been focussed on the investment strategy, the 
governance structure and alternative ways to manage  the risks the Plan was required to cover under 
the terms of its Regulations. 
77. The Board, which combined representatives of  the General Council, participants and 
beneficiaries, had achieved considerable progr ess through a spirit of consensus and prudent 
management in strengthening the resilience of the Pl an and its ability to weather the adverse shocks 
inevitably experienced by pension funds of this t ype.  First, the Board had undertaken a root-and-
branch review of its investment strategy which had last been revised in 2004 .  The main aim of this 
review had been to reduce the risk exposure of the Plan, while at the same time ensuring that the long-
term target of a real rate of return of 3.5 per cen t remained feasible.  The review had been completed, 
and the main outcome had been a significantly re duced exposure to equities in favour of a greater 
exposure to bonds and real estate, together with a switch from active to indexed management.  This 
new strategy was expected to yield less volatility a nd a significant saving in operational cost through a 
reduction in management and custody fees. 
78. Second, the Board had been examining alternative ways in which the in-service death and 
disability risk could be covered at less long-term co st to the Plan.  At the same time, the Board had 
sought to strengthen its governance capacity in this  area, particularly with respect to the medical 
expertise required in such cases.  Not only had th e Board appointed its own expert medical adviser, 
but it had also identified an insurance solution that  would permit the Plan to outsource the funding of 
these risks.  Here again, the Board was seeking to redu ce cost and risk to the Plan in the interest of 
Plan sponsors and participants alike.  In accordan ce with sound procurement principles, the Board had 
reviewed its business relationships with two key a dvisors, namely the investment adviser and the 
consulting actuary.  In both cases, tendering exercis es had been or were being launched, and a new 
investment adviser was already in place, with a si gnificant saving in operating cost.  He stressed that WT/GC/M/128 
Page 20  
 
  none of the above would have been possible withou t the strong spirit of cooperation and consensus 
which had prevailed among the members of the Board, and expressed his deep appreciation for their continuing support.  The Board had very signifi cant responsibilities for the prudent management of 
the assets of the Plan and the social security  of its participants and beneficiaries. 
79. The General Council took note
 of the Annual Report of the Management Board for 2009 in 
WT/L/802 and of the statement. 
7. Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration – Report on meeting of 
October 2010 (WT/BFA/118) 
80. The Chairman  drew attention to the report of the Budget Committee in document 
WT/BFA/118 and invited Mr Vaaranmaa (Finland), Chairman of the Committee, to introduce it. 
81. Mr Vaaranmaa (Finland), Chairman of  the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration , said that at its meeting on 5 October, th e Committee had reviewed the budgetary and 
financial situation of the WTO Secretariat and the extra-budgetary funds up to the end of September.  
The Committee had then taken note of the progress made on the renovation project, which remained on schedule and should be completed by the summer  of 2012.  On the intra-muros, the demolition 
work in the south courtyard was almost completed,  and the construction of the new conference centre 
would start in the following weeks and was scheduled  to become operational in one year.  Delegates 
could currently experience the noise and vibration induced by the groundwork when visiting divisions located in the south wing.  He noted that the inconvenience of noise, dust and vibration was putting some temporary strain on the Secretariat staff working in those areas, and the administration had put in place several measures to alleviate such inc onvenience.  Also, Members should expect to face 
increasing difficulties as the building project progressed  to the north wing, where most of the current 
conference rooms were located.   
82. The Secretariat had presented a proposal to the Committee inviting Members to participate 
through sponsorship in the different projects for equipping the numerous common facilities that were 
planned to be part of the building project.  The common facilities included the south courtyard 
conference centre, the north courtyard atrium, the press centre, the north wing meeting rooms, training 
rooms, the cafeteria and the library to be relocat ed in the new building.  The CHF 130 million of 
financing allocated to the building project had not  provided for the furniture and equipment to be 
installed once the building work had been completed, and the preliminary cost projection for equipping and furnishing all common areas was sti ll in the range of CHF 16 to 18 million.  He 
stressed that the current priority was the south courtyard conference centre that needed to become 
operational in October 2011 before existing conference rooms in the north wing could be renovated.  
Members interested by sponsoring opportuniti es had been invited to contact DDG Yerxa. 
83. The Committee had reviewed the situation of Members subject to Administrative Measures, 
and the Chair of the Working Group on Administra tive Measures had provided an update on the work 
carried out by that Group.  The Director-General remained engaged with Members in this area, and 
the situation continued to improve.  In this r espect, the Committee had reviewed two new payment 
plans aimed at liquidating the arrears in contributi ons of the Republic of the Gambia and the Togolese 
Republic.  In accordance with the decision of the General Council of 15 May 2006, the Committee 
therefore recommended that the General Council su spend the application of the administrative 
measures for the Republic of the Gambia, which had agreed to, and had undertaken to abide by, a 
schedule of instalment payments aimed at liquidati ng all arrears over a period of ten years, starting on 
1 January 2010.  The Committee also recommended th at the General Council suspend the application 
of administrative measures for the Togolese Republic , which had agreed to, and had undertaken to 
abide by, a schedule of instalment payments aimed at  liquidating all arrears over a period of five years 
starting on 1 January 2010.  He explained that th e payments were to be received no later than  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 21 
 
 
  31 December of each year, failing which the administrative measures would be reinstated.  The 
Secretariat had received positive signals from ot her Members willing to liquidate arrears in 
contributions. 
84. The Director-General  drew the Council's attention to the notice at the Documents Centre 
inviting delegations to dow nload documents directly from the Memb ers' website and to use electronic 
versions of documents.  Th is was part of the Secretariat's efforts to reduce paper circulation, cut costs 
and contribute to the collective endeavour of making the WTO carbon neutral.  He encouraged 
delegations to avail themselves of this facility. 
85. The General Council took note  of the statements, approved  the Budget Committee's specific 
recommendations in paragraphs 19 and 21 of its  report in document WT/BFA/118, and adopted  the 
report. 
8. Eighth Ministerial Conference – Statement by the Chairman 
86. The Chairman , speaking under "Other Business ", recalled that at the Seventh Ministerial 
Conference, Ministers had agreed that the next regular session of the Ministerial Conference would be held at the end of 2011, in line with the Rules of  Procedure, which required that the date of each 
regular session of the Conference be established at  the previous session.  With little more than one 
year to go, it was not too early to start some forward planning.  In this respect, on the basis of contacts 
he had had with delegations, there seemed to be wide acceptance that the next Ministerial Conference 
should be held in Geneva.  Therefore, the Secretar iat had explored possible venues for the event, and 
it was clear that the only suitable location in Geneva  for the Conference was the Geneva International 
Conference Centre (CICG), where the Seventh Minister ial Conference had been held.  In light of the 
availability of the CICG and other factors, it appe ared that the most suitable dates for the Eighth 
Ministerial Conference were 15-17 December 2011.  In  due time, the other aspects of the Conference, 
such as its format and programme, would need to  be discussed.  He and his successor as General 
Council Chair would consult with delegations on these issues.   
87. The General Council took note
 of the statement. 
9. Chairmanship of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia – Statement by the 
Chairman 
88. The Chairman , speaking under "Other Business ", said that following consultations among 
Members and with the authorities of Ethiopia, and in  keeping with usual WTO practice, it had been 
agreed that Mr Smidt (Denmark) would serve as Ch airman of the Working Party on the Accession of 
Ethiopia. 
89. The representative of Zambia , on behalf of the LDC Group , said the Group welcomed and 
supported the consensus to approve the nomination of the Chair of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia.  He wished to acknowledge  and welcome the presence at the present meeting 
of Ethiopia's capital-based delegation, headed by Mr Geremew Ayalew, Director of Trade in the 
recently restructured Ministry of Trade.  The LD Cs were hopeful that, with the appointment of the 
new Chair and the re-organisation in Addis,  the accession process for Ethiopia would resume 
immediately and be rapidly advanced.  
90. Mr Smidt (Denmark), Chairman of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia
, said he 
was honoured to have been entrusted with chairing this Working Party and would do his utmost to 
live up to the expectations attached to this task, which he would execute with the assistance of the 
good offices of the Director-General. WT/GC/M/128 
Page 22  
 
  91. The representative of Ethiopia
, speaking as an Observer , thanked the General Council, the 
Director-General, the Secretariat and all those who had made possible the confirmation of the Chairperson of this Working Party.  He also wish ed to thank Mr Smidt, who had accepted to serve as 
Chair of this Working Party.  It had been seven y ears since Ethiopia had first applied to join the WTO 
in 2003, which had included a certain loss of time due to minor procedural problems, but things were 
now on course and his delegation was ready to emba rk on the process.  His Government supported the 
appointment of the Working Party Chair, and was pleased that a consensus had been reached on his 
candidature.  Ethiopia had been undertaking genera l economic reform and transformation since the 
present Government had assumed power.  Major com ponents of these changes were related to trade 
and investment.  Ethiopia had instituted trade la ws and economic policies that were aimed at 
liberalizing and modernizing the country's forei gn trade regime.  As a result, the economy had 
registered a significant rate of growth for the past seven years, without any disruption, even during the 
global financial crisis.  The accession process was a key instrument for domestic reform, and trade was a vehicle to foster development and an engi ne for growth.  For these reasons, Ethiopia had 
decided to accede to the WTO, as it was convinced that being a member of the global trading system 
would enhance its development ende avour and improve life for its people.  Ethiopia therefore trusted 
that Members would consider its level of de velopment and ambition during its bilateral and 
multilateral accession negotiations. 
92. The process of accession, particularly for an LDC like Ethiopia, was a cumbersome, time-
consuming and expensive matter, bot h in terms of human and financial resources.  It went without 
saying that the accession process needed  to be further accelerated, facilitated and simplified to take 
into account the level of development and problems the LDCs encountered.  De spite the existence of 
procedures and guidelines to expedite the accession process, LDCs still found it an uphill struggle in 
their effort to accede to the WTO.  They we re often subject to onerous and "WTO-plus" 
commitments, both at bilateral and multilateral le vels, which went beyond their means and level of 
development.  Facilitating membership of LDCs in the WTO was in the interest both of guaranteeing 
the universality of the organization and of enablin g the LDCs to integrate their economies into the 
multilateral trading system.  Therefore, facilitating the accession of LDCs had to be seen as a two-way approach to creating a win-win situation for all concer ned.  It was with this in mind that Ethiopia had 
embarked on the road to WTO accession.  It wa s ready and committed to work closely with the 
members of the Working Party to make Ethiopia's foreign trade regime compatible and consistent 
with WTO rules.  At the same time, it sought  the support, encouragem ent and understanding of 
Members to make this arduous journey less difficult, and counted on the Secretariat and Members for 
technical assistance and capacity-building support.  His Government hoped that the upcoming accession negotiation track for Ethiopia would be l ess difficult than the path followed by other 
countries who had passed through the same process. 
93. Ethiopia had recently put in place a five-year Growth and Transformation Plan as part of a 
medium-term plan to transform the country into th e category of middle-income countries.  It believed 
that WTO accession would support the level of amb ition and endeavours in this regard and was 
committed to working with Members and the Secr etariat to actively adva nce the accession process 
and bring it to conclusion as soon as possible.  His delegation therefore asked the Working Party 
Chair to move rapidly and in coordination with Members and the Secretariat to develop a clear 
program for Ethiopia's accession.  Ethiopia was ready to play its part and wanted to avoid a long 
drawn-out accession process that would be a drain on its national resources.   His Government wished 
to thank the Director-General and his staff for their sustained efforts to facilitate and accelerate LDCs' 
accessions.  He also welcomed Zambia's initiative, as coordinator of the LDC Group, to include an 
item on the Council's agenda related to LDC accession.  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 23 
 
 
  10. Administrative Measures for Members in  arrears – Statement by the Chairman 
94. The Chairman , speaking under "Other Business ", recalled that at its meeting in May 2006, the 
General Council had approved a recommendati on from the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration regarding revised Administrative Measures for Members in arrears.  Among these 
Administrative Measures was a requirement that at each meeting of the General Council, the 
Chairman of the Committee on Budget, Finance a nd Administration should provide information with 
regard to which Members were under Administra tive Measures in Categories II through IV.  He 
invited the Chairman of the Budget Committee, Mr Vaaranmaa (Finland), to provide the Council with 
this information. 
95. Mr Vaaranmaa (Finland), Chairman of  the Committee on Budget, Finance and 
Administration , said that Peru was the only Member in Category II.  The Secretariat had been 
informed by Peru that a payment of about 260,00  Swiss francs had just been approved by the 
Government and should reach the WTO shortly.  He  further noted that Grenada was the only Member 
in Category III, and that there were now 11 Members in Category IV.  These Inactive Members were: 
Burundi, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo , Djibouti, Dominica, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, 
Mauritania, Nicaragua, Niger and Sierra Leone.  The Secretariat had recently received important 
payments or encouraging signals from Dji bouti, Mauritania, Nicaragua and Niger. 
96. The Director-General  said that in the previous 20 months, the total number of Members 
subject to administrative measures had been reduced  from 27 to 16.  This reduction had taken place in 
the two most challenging categories, III and IV, a nd represented a 45 per cent reduction in those two 
categories.  He urged those who had not yet responded to his communications to do so in the 
following weeks, so that this matter could be advanced.  
97. The Chairman  said that under the revised Administrative Measures, he was also required at 
each Council meeting to request those Members in Ca tegories III and IV of the Measures to inform 
him, before the next meeting of the General Counc il, as to when their payment of arrears might be 
expected. 
98. The General Council took note  of the statements. 
_______________  WT/GC/M/128 
Page 24  
 
  ANNEX 
 
Statements by delegations at the informal meeting 
 
of the Trade Negotiations Committee  
on 19 October 2010  
 
 
 At their request, the statements made by a number of delegations at the above-mentioned 
meeting are included below as part of th e minutes of the General Council meeting. 
 
1. Bangladesh  
 
 We commend your untiring and sincere efforts to make progress in the negotiations.  We 
understand that you had to resort to innovative appr oaches in a variable geom etry, cocktail approach 
and small-group discussions.  We feel encouraged  by your indication of "some progress" although 
uneven, in the small-group process.  However, we understand that these "storming of brains" in the 
small group are only to assist the multilateral negotiati ons.  You have rightly mentioned that the small 
groups reach out and make the process inclusive.   We support your initia tives on the understanding 
that these will result in progress in the negotiations and will help us rebalance the imbalances, and not 
create new imbalances, through an early conclusion of  the Doha Round with development at its core.  
We fully endorse the statement made by Zambia on behalf of the LDC Group.  Although I risk 
sounding repetitive, nevertheless I must mention that the delay in conclusion of the Round is costing 
the LDCs the most.  The state of affairs for the LD Cs has been further aggravated in the post-crisis 
situation.  I would therefore reiterate the call for an early implementation of the commitments made in 
favour of LDCs on DFQF market access, Cotton and Services, in line with the mandate contained in 
paragraph 47 of the Doha Ministerial Declaration.  We expect that the Services waiver decision for 
the LDCs will be agreed upon expeditiously by th e Members without introducing issues complicating 
the discussions.  At the end of the day, the market  access provided through the wa iver is solely at the 
discretion of the preference-granting Member.  Let me  conclude by reaffirming our firm conviction in 
the rules-based multilateral trading system.  
2. Bolivia 
  Thank you for convening this meeting and for the report you have just presented.  We have 
some doubts about the process that has been taking place in Geneva in recent months, particularly 
regarding the small brainstorming groups which came out of the so- called G-23, and which now form 
part of your cocktail approach.  My delegation has always questioned the role of small groups since, 
although they may be well intentioned and very useful, they do not represent the interests of the entire 
Membership.  We also have doubts about the role  of the negotiating group Chairs in these small 
groups and the results that may be produced by the se meetings.  We welcome the efforts to keep us 
informed about what happens in the small groups, but what we need is more inclusion, transparency 
and a greater focus on the work in the negotiating groups.  
 In your statement to the TNC on 26 April, you highlighted a number of principles that should 
guide the next steps in the negotiation:  the need  to maintain and strengthen the centrality of the 
multilateral dimension of the negotiations, to build on what is already on the table in the shape of 
Chairs' texts, and to recognize that the developmen t dimension remains central to the outcome of the 
Round.  At the time, my delegation said that this appr oach was a step in the right direction, but that 
what we are seeking is an effective negotiating pr ocess that is inclusive and involves the full and 
democratic participation of Members, in addition to being transparent, bottom-up and conducted by 
the Members.  In other words, a full multilateral process in which al l of us without exception have the 
opportunity to participate and negotiate, not simply to  attend sessions at which we are informed of the 
negotiations of others.  We  reiterate that position more  forcefully today, and we hope that the errors of  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 25 
 
 
  the past will not be repeated.  Concerning the next G20 meeting, my delegation wishes only to 
reiterate its support for the negotiati ng mandates given to us by our Ministers, and we repeat that we 
will not follow guidelines laid down by forums in which my country does not participate.  
3. Brazil (including for the G-20) 
 
For the G-20
 
  The G-20 considers that Agriculture remain s the engine of the Doha Round and the key 
determinant of the level of ambition in all other ar eas of the negotiation.  As part of the "cocktail 
approach" devised by the Director-General, involvi ng various formats of engagement, some members 
of the G-20 actively participated in the small "b rainstorm group" in Agriculture.  In this first 
interaction of the Agriculture small "brainstorm gr oup", the three pillars were open for discussions in 
order to assess the overall level of ambition in Agri culture.  This approach is based on the principle 
that "everything is conditional in the deepest sen se" as contained in the cover letter to the current 
Draft Modalities for Agriculture.  It was our e xpectation that developed members would show 
leadership in improving the level of ambition of th e package.  Instead, the Agriculture "brainstorm 
group" provided a reiteration of calls for add itional flexibilities and further accommodations for 
developed countries.  Two different  types of requests were made: 
 
• Some developed countries want to preserve th e existing layers of flexibilities in domestic 
support, market access, and export competition; and 
 
• Some developed countries want  even more flexibilities in issues such as product -specific 
disciplines for domestic support, number of sensitive products, tariff capping, the 
creation of new TRQs, among others.  
  G-20 members participating in the small "brainst orm groups" consider them a useful exercise.  
They allow for an informal exchange of views.  Th eir role is to support the multilateral process, which 
is the core negotiating forum, comprising the w hole WTO membership.  In the absence of the 
necessary political will to tackle th e key substantive questions that divide the membership, this new 
format is a necessary step in our discussions, but by no means a sufficient one.  We must preserve the 
centrality of the multilateral process in the Doha R ound negotiations.  In concl uding, let me reiterate, 
the G-20 remains committed to engage constructivel y towards the objective of achieving an ambitious 
and balanced outcome that delivers on the devel opment objectives of the Round in accordance with 
the Mandate. 
 
For Brazil
 
  Like China, we have noticed a distinct une venness among the different small group meetings.  
In those that deal with disciplin es, such as trade facilitation, there were genuine attempts to make 
progress.  In the groups that dealt with market a ccess issues, however, we have not perceived any new 
approaches.  There are some new wo rds, but the concepts so far are the same: old wine in new bottles 
or, to put it differently, plus ça cha nge, plus c'est la même chose.  The ideas floated so far continue to 
disregard the basic premise that there is no free lu nch, and there will be no free ride for developed 
countries in this Round.  The overall balance that resulted from several years of negotiation continues 
to offer the best hope of concluding the Round, and th e level of ambition should be near to what is on 
the table.  There are two corollaries to these assumptions.  The first is that movement in one area 
requires simultaneous movement in other areas.   The second is best summed up in the Mahatma 
Gandhi’s saying "You must be the change you want  to see in the world".  Until now, however, no 
additional contributions from developed countries have  been forthcoming, and there are no indications 
that would justify additional request s to developing countries.  Nevert heless, we note with interest the WT/GC/M/128 
Page 26  
 
  remarks of those who believe that additional meeti ngs of the small groups will provide results.  We 
take that as recognition of the importance of concl uding the Round and we trust they will be ready to 
come forward with offers that improve the package in areas of interest to developing countries.  If 
there is indeed an opportunity in 2011, there is no time to lose.  4. China 
 
 Thank you for your comprehensive briefings on the current situation of negotiations and your 
vision on our next stage of work.  We share with  your comments that the cocktail approach over the 
past few months has been useful.  Members have kept engaging with each other in Geneva.  The 
brainstorming sessions of different groupings of Ambassadors have provided a good opportunity to 
build trust and confidence.  Ambassadors in the groups have learned a grea t deal by listening to 
others’ views and positions and by presenting in greater  detail their own concerns and expectations.  
While it is understandable that we have relatively better results on some issues than others, we are 
concerned that in the field of market access, th e dynamism was not as encouraging and creative as on 
the issues of rules.  This of course has something to do with the overall political situation as well as 
the very nature of brainstorming in the small gr oups instead of actual negotiations.  We support the 
proposal that we should continue to have at least  another round of brainstorming on all the issues and 
at the same time, it is important to maintain th e central role of the negotiating body Chairs’ process 
and bring the results of the brainstorming sessi ons into the multilateral process and keep the 
transparency and inclusiveness of the negotiations.  We  believe that at certain stage, the horizontal 
exercises should start and the Chairs should prepare re vised draft texts for the final trade-offs.  It is 
encouraging to learn from the Korean Delegation that at the coming G20 Summit, leaders would 
spend some time on the DDA negotiations.  The st rong guidance and instructions from the G20 
leaders would be very conducive to re-energize the negotiations. 
 
 The Doha Round has been going on for 9 years.  Due to its complexity and sensitivity, it is 
understandable if it has to take a little more time th an the previous Rounds.  But if it lingers on for 
much too long, it would cause great damage to the multilateral trading system.  There would be more 
shift of emphasis from multilateral to bilateral or regional trade arrangements with even more unilateral trade protective actions and unavoidable re taliations.  The credibility and relevancy of this 
organization would be put in jeopardy facing with th e new challenges and new situations of the world 
economy.  In order to accelerate the negotiations, we should have a sober- minded assessment of the 
value of what is already on the table.  The ar gument that there is not enough market access on the 
table from the developing countries is not convincing.  The actual fact recognized by the great majority of Members is that the commitments by the developing countries in this Round are already 
unprecedented in the history of GATT and WTO nego tiations.  As you have rightly pointed out on 
many occasions, what is on the table is already twice or three times more ambitious than the previous 
Round.  As many Members have pointed out, the conclusion of the Doha Round could serve as the 
least costly stimulus package for the world ec onomic recovery.  It would provide tremendous 
opportunities for job creation and expo rt expansion both for developed a nd developing countries.  In 
order to accelerate the negotiations, Members should adopt pragmatic and realistic approaches in the 
efforts to top up what is already on the table, bearing in mind the Doha development mandate and 
taking into consideration  the political and ec onomic constraints in many developing countries 
particularly after the world financial and econom ic crisis.  The demandeurs must recognize the 
limitations of how much more they could get after the unprecedented formula cut in NAMA and the end-game signalling conference in July 2008.  They must understand that what more they want will 
not come for free.  They must give clear indications  on what they are going to offer in return for the 
extra efforts from the developing countries.  Fina lly, we believe it is crucial that Members should 
make special efforts to address the concerns of LDCs and SVEs in an e ffective and expeditious 
manner. I would like to support the call made by the Am bassador of Zambia on this  issue.  This is one 
of the main objectives of the Doha Development Round.   I would like to reiterate that China will  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 27 
 
 
  participate actively in the small group brain-st orming sessions and the Chairs’ process and work 
closely with other Members for the final conclusion of the Round.  
5. Colombia 
  We appreciate your report on the current state of the negotiations and support the statement 
made by Australia on behalf of the Cairns Group.   At the Committee meeting at the end of July, 
Colombia, like many other Members, welcomed th e start of a process of substantive discussion, in 
small groups, at the initiative of the la rgest Members of this Organization. 
 
 Today, we would like to emphasize why this process is useful: 
 
1. It allows ambassadors to become direc tly involved in the discussion of the most 
complex negotiating issues; 
2. it gives a broad group of Members, incl uding the largest ones, the opportunity to 
engage in dialogue and gain each other's trust; 
3. it opens up space for exchanging ideas on po ssible solutions to issues of divergence; 
4. it provides a horizontal and comprehensive view of the negotiations; 5. it has encouraged the largest WTO Members to begin assuming their negotiating 
responsibilities. 
 
 If this process continues to progress positively, we hope it will lay the groundwork for 
decision-making in the negotiating group.  This is its  main purpose.  Since this effort has only just 
begun, it is unreasonable to expect immediate and plentiful results.  Bearing in mind the variety and complexity of the issues, the process must be given sufficient time before its achievements are 
assessed.  There should, at the very least, be time to complete an initial review of all outstanding 
issues, before any conclusions are made about the benefits of the process. 
  In light of the above, it is vital to ensure the following:  
- Any solutions reached in the small group process must always be passed on to the 
Committees or negotiating groups, which must remain the focal point of the 
negotiations; 
- while these parallel discussions are taki ng place, the work of the negotiating groups 
must be pursued as intensively as possible; 
- maximum transparency must be ensured, but through institutional channels, not the 
media.  The latter could harm the process and disrupt the negotiations; 
- Members, in particular the largest ones, mu st remain genuinely involved in the search 
for solutions.  The process cannot be used  as a forum for reiterating known positions 
or as a smokescreen for concealing an intenti on not to negotiate.  There must be clear 
political will to reach a conclusion.  The forthcoming meetings of the G-20 and APEC must give clear signs of this. 
 
 In conclusion, we encourage the Membership , in particular the largest Members of the 
Organization, to continue working to move the Doha  Round forward.  The eyes of the world, although 
increasingly sceptical, remain on us.  
6. Cuba 
 
 I have listened carefully to your report, wh ich we thank you for, but notice no substantial 
differences from what we have been hearing over th e last few days in various WTO meetings.  The 
most worrying thing however, is that the future re mains full of uncertainty and devoid of any specific 
signs or indications as to how to settle the debts wh ich exist in respect of development, the core aspect WT/GC/M/128 
Page 28  
 
  of this Round.  In addition, we are still waiting fo r one WTO Member to become properly involved in 
these negotiations - something which looks unlikely to happen in the short term.  While many are 
waiting for a push to come from other forums and from the political decisions made by the leaders 
meeting at those forums, we believe that the impetu s needed should come from  within this forum.  
Other forums, as demonstrated on previous occasions, have not contributed anything.  Those of us 
who have spent some time involved in these negotia tions are seeing a lot of repetition:  From the 
statements of goodwill made to try and lift the negotiati ons out of their current impasse, to the use of 
methods not appropriate to the multilateral sphere, which disregar d the fundamental principles of 
transparency and inclusiveness that should charact erize the WTO's work.  A number of delegations 
have already referred to this and quite rightly so .  The G-20 (in its statement which we endorse as a 
member of the Group) has also commented on the n eed to preserve the centrality of the multilateral 
process.  The G-33 and the Small, Vulnerable Econ omies have also expressed concern about these 
small group meetings, and we support their views.  In our opinion, the current brainstorming  
exercise between a number of ambassadors will be worthless if these discussions do not come back to 
the multilateral environment with tangible results that  resolve the issues raised quite a while back by 
so many countries, including Cuba. 
 Agriculture
 
  On 1 June 2010, Cuba made available to all WTO Members document TN/AG/GEN/31, with 
a view to amending paragraph 5 of Annex J (Modal ities for Agriculture).  This proposal calls for 
special and differential treatment for LDCs and NF IDCs that are facing exceptional circumstances 
which prevent them financing normal levels of comme rcial imports of basic foodstuffs.  Recently, at 
the special meeting of the Committee on Agriculture, Cuba requested recognition of its right to an 
unlimited time-frame in respect of credit for obtain ing food.  For Cuba, which runs its economy and 
trade under unique circumstances on account of the US  blockade, a positive response to this request is 
vital in the context of not only the current negotiations, but the Doha Agenda in general. 
NAMA
 
 With regard to the negotiations on non-tariff barriers which are taking place within the 
framework of the NAMA Negotiating Group, Cuba feel s that the same level of attention should be 
given to the rest of the proposals that are not in "W agon 1".  Consultations must be held on the rest of 
the proposals in Annex 5 of the Draft Modaliti es, so that Members can submit comments and 
questions to the proponents;  the proponents, in  turn, can respond and/or improve the texts in 
accordance with the comments they receive, with the aim being to move their proposals forward and 
into another "wagon".  Services
 
 Turning now to the services sector.  Cuba r eaffirms that the only mandate for comparing 
levels of ambition should c ontinue to be that relating to the le vel of ambition between agriculture and 
NAMA.  In this respect, Cuba finds it unacceptable that some developed Members are trying to make 
the outcome of this Round conditional on obtaini ng "comparative advantages" in services, including 
from the emerging economies.  It has become clear th at the main thing hindering the progress of these 
negotiations is the lack of political will shown by  the developed countries when it comes to agreeing 
to the requirements of the developing countries in se ctors of interest to them, when, in return, they 
demand of the developing countries greater levels of  liberalization that are in no way justifiable. 
 Development issues
 
 With regard to the negotiations on special and differential treatment taking place under the 
auspices of the Committee on Trade and Development in Special Session, we are concerned about the  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 29 
 
 
  stagnant state of the various existing proposals and th e invitation to reformulate the texts with a view 
to weakening the existing mandate .  I would like to remind you that in April Cuba submitted a 
proposal to improve the transfer of technology in respect of technical barriers to trade and sanitary 
and phytosanitary measures, a funda mental aspect of special and diffe rential treatment.  At the next 
Committee meeting we hope to see this proposal revi ewed constructively by the Members, so that it 
may be carried forward successfully.  The proposal is balanced, fair and centred on development. 
 Trade and development
 
 Lastly, it worries us that despite the standstill in the negotiations and in the work in a number 
of areas of the Doha Round, attempts are being made to introduce new items into the agendas of 
various bodies.  Such is the case with trade and e nvironment, where an attempt is being made to 
handle issues such as climate change, product carbon footprint calculation systems, and even trade 
and transport, which lay outside th e mandate established in the Doha  Ministerial Declaration.  In 
reality, these issues are the responsibility of other inte rnational organizations.  Efforts must focus on 
the agenda adopted by consensus in Doha, wh ich includes issues of vital importance for the 
developing world - issues such as trade and technology transfer, and trade, debt and finance, which, 
paradoxically, have been left by the wayside and wh ich not even the developing countries themselves 
have had the opportunity to move forward given th e constant reticence shown by the industrialized 
countries towards any form of initiative.   It is understandable that you wish to transmit optimism to the Members, and while we would 
really like to share such optimism, we find it very difficult to do so, given that on other occasions it 
has not been accompanied by reality.  
7. Mexico 
  At the last TNC meeting held in June, practically all Members reaffirmed our commitment to 
the successful conclusion of the Doha Round, but we also regretted the lack a process whereby 
possible areas of flexibility to make such a conclusi on possible could be identified.  Since then, a new 
process has been put in place, one of small discu ssion groups at ambassador level.  Like other 
delegations, despite the brainstormi ng involved in the process, we c onsider that it has been a positive 
step and that it should serve as a platform to enrich your cocktail approach, feeding into the 
negotiating groups and the participation of senior offici als, so that we can move into the final phase of 
the negotiations, in which a suc cessful conclusion of the Round can be made a reality through 
horizontal exchanges.   The year 2011 will probably be the last window of opportunity for concluding these 
negotiations.  After that date, electoral processes w ill once again dictate the trade agenda, so that we 
either finish in 2011 or the Round could die of st arvation with nobody to attend the funeral and no 
tears being shed, since there would be no death notice.  This is the reality that we face.  This being the 
case, I think that for the time being we should proceed along two tracks:  on the one hand, as I said, we must continue deepening the cocktail approach , through continued discussions in small groups in 
variable geometry mode, while at the same time seeking to link the progress made in that work with 
advances in the negotiating groups.  In other word s, this new dynamic requires the chairs of the 
different negotiating groups to play a more active ro le so that synergies can be created between both 
processes, and with the bilateral processes, whic h – we hope – will gather momentum among the main 
players.  The other track should be to take advantag e of all the meetings of leaders, such as the G20 
and APEC, so that a message at the highest level is  sent to the negotiators in Geneva, making it clear 
that this window of opportunity must not be mi ssed, since otherwise the chance to stimulate global 
growth and employment and contribute to the wo rldwide economic recovery would be lost.  In 
Toronto, the G20 leaders called for all possible means to be used to promote advances in Doha.  This 
has been happening, although as we re cognized today, our discussions are still at an exploratory stage.  WT/GC/M/128 
Page 30  
 
  What is required is that, at their meeting in Seoul,  the leaders recognize that this should be the last 
stage in progress towards conclusion of the Round, and that they reaffirm the full powers of the 
negotiators in Geneva to complete this stage and ach ieve the final goal in 2011.  If this process is to 
bear fruit, we believe that it should be transparent and inclusive;  and above all, it should be given 
more flexibility by the main players. 
 
8. Switzerland (for the G-10) 
 
 As a Member of the G-10, I owe an answer to the Cairns Group.  Yes, Agriculture is a centre 
of the Round.  But in a fruit, the centre is usually  hard to eat.  It's the flesh around which provides 
satisfaction.  That's the situation we face, as G-10 Members.  Following your assessment of the 
situation Mr Chairman, there were many interventio ns related to Small Groups .  But there is only one 
avenue for progressing.     First, we do absolutely need to receive input s from the Political level.  There will be very 
important meetings and discussions  amongst G20 leaders in Seoul and amongst APEC leaders.  Some 
Ministers may meet in Davos next year.  To move forward, we need to receive clear signals from those political leaders.  The Multilateral Trading Syst em needs to be back on the radar screen in 
capitals and the need to enter the end game has to be clearly voiced.  Second, the TNC continues to 
play an important role, in channelling the informatio n to ensure transparency for all Members.  I'm 
sure that all delegations, as Switzerland, are r eady to share their additional information with 
Colleagues wishing to know more about what happens  in town.  Third, the Negotiation Groups have 
to focus on the substantive issues, which are in their mandates.  It is up to delegations to stimulate 
multilateral discussions on informally circulated ideas.   In my view, Chairs of NGs need to prepare 
for revised texts, early 2011.  Fourth, Small Gr oups serve at least four purposes:  to engage 
Ambassadors, to identify gaps, to establish dialogue in a broader framework than just the majors and 
to identify elements for further more horizontal  approaches in a brainstorming mode.  It is 
nevertheless obvious that one cannot draw too many c onclusions after just one round of discussions.  
But those informal discussions have generally been very useful, in our view.  Conscience did arise 
that development issues are for all Members and that there is no North-South divide amongst Members.  We do appreciate the next oppor tunity for taking stock mid November.  
  
 Let's also not forget about the importance of the bi and plurilateral meetings among 
delegations to move the process forward.  They are of paramount importance for clarifying levels of 
ambition, identify possible solutions and are sour ces of inputs into Small Groups and negotiation 
groups.  In parallel with the DDA negotiations, which have to be speeded up, there are some other 
events to scrutinize in the 2011 horizon.  Work  will hopefully move forward on accessions, including 
Russia, and GPA will hopefully conclude it's negotiati ons early in the next year, at the latest.   
 
Four basic observations can be made on the e volution of world trade since we started the 
Round, in 2001: 
 - Since then, trade flows have been redistri buted and new players have emerged, which 
is very positive. 
- International trade follows no longer a North-South pattern. - New challenges are lying ahead of us and we  will have to tackle them sooner rather 
than later. 
- We are presently in a transition period,  with many governments supported by very 
small majorities, because populations often feel that their governments left comfort 
zones.  We have nevertheless to succeed. 
 
Let me conclude with a Swiss perspective a nd a touch of wisdom.  This delegation is 
obviously ready to work hard, as usual, and to come to the table with constructive ideas.   WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 31 
 
 
  Agriculture remains a huge problem for us and we will need collateral benefits in order to come to a 
fruitful conclusion.   On a more philosophical note, I will leave you with that thought illustrating the fact that we need to be realistic if we want to be able to conclude this Round: "Mon dieu, donne-moi 
la sérenité d'accepter les choses que je ne peux change r, le courage de changer ce que je peux et la 
sagesse de faire la différence." 
 
9. Chinese Taipei (for the RAMs Group) 
 
 First of all, I would like to  join others in thanking you for the report on the recent 
development of the DDA negotiations.  The RAMs Gr oup supports your cocktail approach that WTO 
Members must continue to engage in the formats and configuration, multilaterally, plurilaterally or 
bilaterally.  In this connection, we are pleased to  see that Members have actively participated in 
various meetings in all fronts, including tho se negotiating meetings led by Chairs and those 
brainstorming sessions held in the context of differe nt small groups to explore possible solutions for 
moving ahead of Doha negotiations.  We would lik e to express our gratitude to the Chairs of 
negotiating groups and Facilitators of various sma ll groups for their strenuous efforts in holding and 
coordinating those meetings, which, in our view, ha ve been useful and constructive.   Certainly, 
Mr Chair, your efforts in coordinating with Memb ers in various occasions have also contributed 
positively in this process as well.  However, as in dicated in the past, the RAMS Group has been 
deeply concerned about the process and substance of those meetings, including the composition of 
various small grouping and the rela tions between the outcome of th e small group discussions and the 
overall DDA negotiations.  In other word, we do not want to have “surprises” which we will not be 
able to accept.  And, as you know, the RAMs Group is  willing to contribute and participate in the 
process in whatever the formats.  Finally, we w ould like to emphasize the importance of multilateral 
process.  And small groups meetings are not a subs titute for multilateral process, which should remain 
the centre of negotiations.  In this regard, you can be assured that the RAMs Group remains 
committed to working closely with you, with th e Chairs of the negotiating groups, and with our 
fellow-Members, to bring the DDA negotiations to a successful conclusion as soon as possible. 
 
10. Turkey 
 
 We would like to thank you for your very comprehensive report.  We appreciate your 
pioneering role and your tireless efforts to reach  a successful conclusion in the Doha Development 
Round.  We align ourselves with the statement made by  Indonesia on behalf of G-33.  In a way, this is 
our first TNC meeting in the new WTO calendar year , which, we believe, may give momentum to the 
ongoing process in the Round.  According to the Chin ese calendar, we are in the Year of Tiger, 
calling us to run like a tiger and move on to the subs tance before turning into a rabbit next year, the 
agile Year of Rabbit.  The level of progress we have  made so far does not suffice to see things through 
rosy optics.  We increasingly feel the urgency to finalize the Round.  Many of us are referring to 2011 as a window of opportunity and 2011 is going to be a crucial and critical year for the conclusion.  In 
this respect, the recent steps of the major play ers and their contribution to the small-group of 
brainstorming sessions are useful.  In short, these small-group meetings, which have emerged as a by-
product of the “cocktail approach”, should be consider ed as a step in the right direction.  We should 
keep in mind that these are mere ly “brain-storming” meetings, but  not negotiations.  We hope this 
attempt would be a catalyst when we come to the final landing zone.  It is quite early to make an 
overall assessment of the process.  Convening a few more rounds of small-gr oup meetings seems to 
be necessary at this point.  An overall assessmen t could be made in mid-November.  We should 
remind each other "the law of diminishing returns"  when this approach exhausts its usefulness. 
 
 Furthermore, we should start to think on how to make these small-group meetings 
multilateralized.  Inclusiveness and transparency  are sacred principles we follow.  The DG’s 
commitment to inform the membership on the overall stat e of play is very vital.  I also wish to say a 
few words on the upcoming G20 Meeting in Seoul .  We believe that a strong message and the WT/GC/M/128 
Page 32  
 
  commitment of leaders, emanating from the G20 Meeting concerning Doha Development Round 
would be quite helpful to hasten the process.  The commitment of G20 to the Doha Development 
Round will be a remarkable contribution in terms of political will to break the deadlock to bring the 
Round to an end successfully.  The Geneva-based  and member-driven character of Doha 
Development Round should, no doubt, be main tained.  A message from G20 Meeting would 
complement the efforts made in Geneva.  As this  is labeled as a development round, LDC issues 
should be given priority in formulating our final out come.  The issue raised by Zambia should receive 
positive, expeditious and effectiv e response from the memb ership.  In conclusion, we sincerely 
believe that, keeping and promoting optimistic phase, we will be able to consolidate the trust to the 
role of the WTO in the better functioning of the international trading system.  
 
11. United States  
 
 Thanks for your report and for this broad opportuni ty to exchange views.  At the TNC in July, 
the United States expressed its view that it was our  collective challenge to pivot Doha discussions 
from process to substance.  The good news is that we  are beginning to meet that challenge.  Clearly, 
the most significant development since the last meeti ng of this body has been the dramatic increase in 
direct, substantive engagement by Ambassadors thr ough small, informal meetings on the full gamut of 
issues.  These discussions are inte nded to supplement and to catalyze the work of the multilateral 
negotiating groups – but there is a shared recognition that these efforts in no way diminish the central 
role of the multilateral process.  My colleagues who have been here longer than I tell me that the 
small-group discussions represent the first substantiv e exchanges on most issues in more than two 
years.  Most of these groups have only met once, focusing primarily on the organization of their work, 
so it would be premature to try and draw any conclu sions on what to expect from the process.   In 
services, for example, we have held only one, three- hour meeting.  In agriculture, we have not yet 
even begun a discussion of important issues including SSM. 
 
 In NAMA, it was only at the end of our fi rst meeting that we began to discuss Japan’s 
creative new idea for looking at sectorals.  I hear d the comments today about "old wine in new 
bottles" and I won’t stretch that metaphor too far.  I will say this:  I apparently have less ability than 
others to see into the future.  Sectorals repres ent a difficult, important area of the negotiations on 
which we have not previously engaged.  At the ve ry end of the first NAMA discussion, we had barely 
begun to discuss Japan’s idea.  Many admitted that they  did not yet understand the concept.  In that 
light – an open mind, a willingness to learn and to enga ge – would be a more constructive posture.  At 
a meeting the other day, one of my fellow Ambas sadors noted that he couldn’t imagine that in 
embarking on this road that any of us believed that  we would solve all the difficult issues before us in 
one or two meetings.  And of course he's right. 
 
 In the weeks ahead, there will be opportunities for Ministers and Leaders to share views on 
the negotiations and for them to endeavour to im part new momentum to the negotiations.  Those 
opportunities will be important.  But make no mistak e.  The negotiations will still come right back 
here to us.  What matters most is what happens right here in Geneva.  We’ve tried deadlines; we’ve 
tried big events; we’ve tried asking Chairs to solve problems that we could not solve among 
ourselves.  The lesson we’ve taken away from those e fforts is that there is no substitute for direct, 
substantive engagement among the Memb ers at bilateral, plurilateral, a nd multilateral levels.  Only we 
as Members can resolve the issues that have thus  far stood in the way of success.  That places an 
enormous responsibility on us – but  it's a responsibility that we cannot avoid or shirk.  We welcome 
the broader and more substantive engagement that has taken place over the past three months here in 
Geneva.  This engagement must inte nsify if we are to achieve the pr omise of this once-in-a-generation 
opportunity.  We are open to all views of how best to improve upon and to energize this process.  But 
it is not enough simply to criticize.  Having pivoted from process to the hard work of substance, our 
new, urgent challenge is to pivot from brainsto rming to negotiating.  The United States is fully 
committed to seizing this opportunity and we look forw ard to working with our negotiating partners to  WT/GC/M/128 
 Page 33 
 
 
  embrace our collective responsibility.  Let me be  clear on that point:  The United States does not 
believe that the developing world exists as a mono lith.  We all know that it does not.  Already we 
recognize – appropriately – that LD Cs and SVEs do not have the same  level of responsibility as other 
developing economies.  By the same token, emergi ng economies must accept a level of responsibility 
commensurate with their role and position in the global economy.  We cannot succeed without their 
due contribution. 
 
12. Zambia (for the LDC Group) 
 
 We note from your report that several meetings  have taken place within  various negotiating 
groups to move the negotiating agenda forward.  We also take note of the report you have given on 
the meetings held in various configurations in or der to bring all issues on the negotiating table to a 
level of maturity that will facilitate the conclusion of a deal when time is ripe.  In this respect and in 
accordance with the agreed cocktail approach, the LDCs have been represented in some of the small 
group brainstorming discussions.  Our assessment thus  far, is that these discussions provide the 
necessary platform to clarify issues on the negotiating ta ble.  However, we are of the view that is it 
too early to give a full assessment as some small groups  have only met once.  Having said that, I wish 
to stress that the multilateral pr ocess remains central and therefor e everything that matures through 
these small group discussions will have to be channe lled to the larger membership.  The LDC Group 
notes that although some progress has been made on a number of issues in clarifying the main gaps, 
we are however concerned that the negotiations ar e not at a level where we can begin to tackle 
horizontal issues to allow conclusion of negotiations in the nearest possible future.  For this reason, 
the Group wishes to call upon those members with out standing gateway issues to adopt a flexible 
approach in order to unlock the current impa sse and pave way for the conclusion of these 
negotiations.   
 I wish to reiterate that delayed conclusion of negotiations means denial of development 
benefits for LDCs.  As you are all aware, preparations for the UN LDC-IV Conference are advancing.  It will be unfortunate to reach Istanbul without a package for the LDCs on trade, which is a key and 
critical cornerstone for unlocking the growth and de velopment of LDCs.  For this reason, the LDC 
group wish to emphasize the importance of conc luding the DDA and an early implementation of 
commitments undertaken in favour of LDCs relati ng to cotton, services and duty free and quota free 
market access, with accomp anying preferential rules of origin.  We would also like to propose that 
issues concerning LDCs contained in modalities wher e there has been no movement should form part 
of priority issues for consideration in the coming mo nths so that the remaining outstanding issues are 
fully addressed.  In particular, we would like to see progress on the discussions relating to preferential 
rules of origin and to begin working on defining an appropriate monitoring mechanism for the 
implementation of DFQF as contained in the NAMA and Agriculture modalities.  
  As regards services, the group wishes these nego tiations to live up to the letter and spirit of 
the Modalities and ensure that the draft waiver d ecision is agreed up in accordance with the sequence 
set in Annex C of the Hong Kong Ministerial De claration, which calls on members to develop 
appropriate mechanisms for accordi ng special priority including to sectors and modes of supply of 
interest to LDCs before the deadline for submitting revised offers.  This sequencing was set to allow 
members to include in their revised offers, sectors and modes of interest to LDCs.  Last but not least Mr. Chairman, the LDC Group welcomes the inclusion of a dedicated session on trade on the G20 Summit scheduled to take place in Seoul next month.   We believe this will help bring the DDA issue 
on the active agenda of the G20 leaders.  The impor tant thing we would like to see from the decisions 
ensuing from Seoul is a firm and unequivocal instructi on to the negotiators in Geneva to conclude the 
Round.  We wish to emphasize the fact that it is onl y when respective capitals give such instructions, 
are we going to witness real impetus for decisions in  Geneva.  A mere declaration like before will not 
achieve this result. 
__________